From dumping to circular economy: There is no success like failure

Waste management has been developing in response to needs. The need to get rid of unwanted materials has always been a motivation but using the resource value of waste has also been a driver from the stone age and forwards. In affluent times not so much. Sanitation became a motivation with the discovery of pathogenic microorganisms in the mid-19th century, and after World War 2 (WW2) a strong focus on environmental protection developed, and in recent times, the resource aspect has received an interest despite material affluence. Legislation has been one of the drivers for recent developments, in the case of Sweden, the environmental protection legislation came in the late 1960s, and a few years later, the municipalities got the exclusive right to collect and manage household waste. Many local and regional waste management companies were established, owned by the municipalities. These organizations became agents of development, due to the increased scope and capacity. Adding to the environmental protection agenda, a renewed interest in waste as a resource was initiated by the oil crises of the 1970s, resulting in new waste incineration plants, with energy recovery, connected to already existing district heating networks. Mistakes, failures and alarms in the 1970s and the 1980s resulted in treatment method improvements and the establishment of source separation as an integral part of waste management. The waste management community stands strong today and is taking a more proactive role than before, which includes a stronger focus on communication with other stakeholders.