249 



with serious financial, management, intergov- 

 ernmental, and technical problems in the dis- 

 posal of solid wastes resulting from the indus- 

 trial, commercial, domestic, and other activities 

 carried on in such areas; 



"(4) that while the collection and disposal of 

 solid wastes should continue to be primarily the 

 function of State, regional, and local agencies, 

 the problems of waste disposal as set forth above 

 have become a matter national in scope and in 

 concern and necessitate Federal action through 

 financial and technical assistance and leader- 

 ship in the development, demonstration, and 

 appliaction of new and improved methods and 

 processes to reduce the amount of waste and un- 

 salvageable materials and to provide for proper 

 and economical solid-waste disposal practices. 

 "(b) Environmental and Health. — The Congress 

 finds with respect to the environmental and health, 

 that — 



"(1) although land is too valuable a national 

 resource to be needlessly polluted by discarded 

 materials, most solid waste is disposed of on land 

 in open dumps and sanitary landfills: 



"(2) disposal of solid waste and hazardous 

 waste in or on the land without careful planning 

 and management can present a danger to human 

 health and the environment; 



" (3 ) as a result of the Clean Air Act, the Water 

 Pollution Control Act, and other Federal and 

 State laws respecting public health and the en- 

 vironment, greater amounts of solid waste (in 

 the form of sludge and other pollution treatment 

 residues) have been created. Similarly, inade- 

 quate and environmentally unsound practices for 

 the disposal or use of solid waste have created 

 greater amounts of air and water pollution and 

 other problems for the environment and for 

 health; 



"(4) open dumping is particularly harmful to 

 health, contaminates drinking water from un- 

 derground and surface supplies, and pollutes the 

 air and the land ; 



"(5) hazardous waste presents, in addition to 

 the problems associated with non-hazardous 

 solid waste, special dangers to health and re- 

 quires a greater degree of regulation than does 

 non -hazardous solid waste; and 



"(6) alternatives to existing methods of land 

 disp>osal must be developed since many of the 

 cities in the United States wUl be running out 

 of suitable solid waste disposal sites within five 

 years unless immediate action is taken ; 

 "(c) Materials. — The Congress finds with re- 

 spect to materials, that — 



"(1) millions of tons of recoverable materials 

 which could be used are needlessly buried each 

 year; 



"(2) methods are available to separate usable 

 materials from solid waste ; and 



"(3) the recovery and conservation of such 

 materials can reduce the dependence of the 

 United States on foreign resources and reduce 

 the deficit in its balance of payments. 



"(d) Energy. — The Congress finds with respect 

 to energy, that — 



"(1) solid waste represents a potential source 

 of solid fuel, oil, or gas that can be converted 

 into energy ; 



"(2) the need exists to develop alternative en- 

 ergy sources for public and private consump- 

 tion in order to reduce our dependence on such 

 sources as jjetroleum products, natural gas, nu- 

 clear and hydroelectric generation; and 



"(3) technology exists to produce usable en- 

 ergy from solid waste. 



"objectives 



"Sec 1003. The objectives of this Act are to pro- 

 mote the protection of health and the environment 

 and to conserve valuable material and energy re- 

 sources by — 



"(1) providing technical and financial assist- 

 ance to State and local governments and Inter- 

 state agencies for the development of solid waste 

 management plans (including resources recovery 

 and resources conservation systems) which will 

 promote improved solid waste management 

 techniques (including more effective organiza- 

 tional arrangements) , new and improved meth- 

 ods of collection, separation, and recovery of solid 

 waste, and the environmentally safe disposal of 

 nonrecoverable residues; 



"(2) providing training grants In occupations 

 involving the design, operation, and maintenance 

 of solid waste disposal systems; 



"(3) prohibiting future open dumping on the 

 land and requiring the conversion of existing 

 open dumps to facilities which do not pose a 

 danger to the environment or to health; 



"(4) regulating the treatment, storage, trans- 

 portation, and disposal of hazardous wastes 

 which have adverse effects on health and the 

 environment; 



"(5) providing for the promulgation of guide- 

 lines for solid waste collection, transport, separa- 

 tion, recovery, and disposal practices and 

 systems ; 



"(6) promoting a national research and devel- 

 opment program for improved solid waste man- 

 agement and resource conservation techniques, 

 more effective organizational arrangements, and 

 new and Improved methods of collection, separa- 

 tion, and recovery, and recycling of solid wastes 

 and environmentally safe disposal of nonrecover- 

 able residues; 



"(7) promoting the demonstration, construc- 

 tion, and application of solid waste management, 

 resource recovery, and resource conservation sys- 

 tems which preserve and enhance the quality of 

 air, water, and land resources; and 



"(8) establishing a cooperative effort among 

 the Federal, State, and local governments and 

 private enterprise in order to recover valuable 

 materials and energy from solid waste. 



"definitions 

 "Sec. 1004. As used in this Act: 



