A Timeline of the Modern Solid Waste Industry

How humans have dealt with the waste they generate has always been a societal issue; the advent of the history of modern solid waste management rose alongside the expansion of mass production of consumer goods that was integral to the post-war boom.

The development of products like disposable pens and razors, convenience foods, plastics of all sorts alongside the adoption of concepts like mass consumption and forced obsolescence led to a massive explosion in the volume of waste generated in the West.

This burst of waste forced new solutions. With that, an ages-old industry transformed and evolved. It became formalized and regulated. Organizations and corporations were formed and grew.

Here, as part of our package of stories in celebration of the 50th anniversary of WasteExpo, we present a timeline of some of the key events in the modern solid waste industry.

Have something to contribute to the timeline? Please email the information to Waste360 Editorial Director Mallory Szczepanski at [email protected] for inclusion consideration.

Sources

http://astc.org/exhibitions/rotten/timeline.htm

http://time.com/4568234/history-origins-recycling/

http://foresternetwork.com/daily/waste/landfill-management/a-brief-history-of-solid-waste-management-in-the-us-during-the-last-50-years/

http://community.swana.org/HigherLogic/System/DownloadDocumentFile.ashx?DocumentFileKey=491747f6-f85f-4774-99dc-a6903c1714be

https://www.kab.org/about-us/mission-history

https://nerc.org/advisory-members/member-spotlight/2015/06/national-waste-and-recycling-association-(nwra)

http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/covanta-energy-corporation-history/

Company web pages

Waste360 archives