Re: state wasting rates

Bruce Nordman (b_nedg@dante.lbl.gov)
Wed, 28 Jul 1999 11:25:49 -0700 (PDT)


Re: the postings on whether some states have experienced an increase
in materials going to landfill in recent years.

The EPA's figures on total MSW generation through 1996 show a slight
decline in overall generation from 1990, even on a per-capita basis,
though it would be more reasonable to call it 'flat' over that
period. I'm not aware of figures to suggest that it has significantly
increased in the intervening three years, but haven't seen anything
conclusive.

Construction activity in our county here in California has been
at record high levels, so we can surmise that C&D debris generation
has increased sharply. So, increases in materials going to landfill
would most likely be from this source, other industrial waste, or
declines in recycling.

--Bruce Nordman
BNordman@LBL.gov