MODERN METHODS OF STREET CLEANING 



panies which receive annual payments of money for 

 their service. Reliable information is not available 

 concerning the profits. 



Raw garbage is practically useless for fertilizer. It 



should be first composted or rotted somewhat as we rot 



stable manure; but this is an undiscovered 



Use of City 



wastes as art in America. Composting is done in a 

 large and scientific way in Europe, especially 

 at Amsterdam. 



It is impossible to burn raw garbage unless it is mixed 

 Burning as with something of better fuel value or deprived 

 FinaTSspl of its excessive moisture, 

 sition T^ m ixed refuse of houses can be burned 



in special furnaces, and the so-called rubbish can be 

 burned, often to good sanitary advantage. The aim 

 should be to produce high temperatures, 1000 to 

 2000 F. ; and utilize the heat for the production of 

 steam power. In England it has been found possible 

 to evaporate from 1.5 to 2.5 pounds of water from 1 

 pound of mixed refuse containing garbage, rubbish, 

 ashes, etc. All the principal features of the best plants 

 are patented. So far, few or no good furnaces have been 

 built in the United States. Most of the destructors 

 constructed have been extremely crude affairs and 

 expensive to operate. There is no apparent reason why 

 refuse furnaces should not be more widely used in 

 America. Skill both in design and operation are re- 

 quired for successful results. There is always some 

 odor in the immediate vicinity of these plants; if they 

 are not carefully built and managed they may cause 

 widespread offense. 



Incineration, or burning, is a better process than re- 

 duction from a sanitary standpoint, since it mineralizes 



34 



