A law for the national policy on solid-waste management: the Brazilian case

摘要

Solid-waste management has become one of the greatest challenges to achieve sustainable development. According to Agenda 21, environmentally sound solid-waste management should not only include safe reuse, recovery and disposal, but the adoption of measures to change production and consumption patterns as well. These actions, however, would require the partnership of all segments of society. In Brazil, approximately 230 thousand tons of solid waste is produced on a daily basis. According to the Brazilian Association of Environmental and Sanitary Engineering (1996), only 3% of municipalities are able to manage their waste properly. In 63% of these towns, waste is merely thrown away in water collections. In the remaining, waste is simply thrown away in open dumps. There are approximately 12,000 open dumps spread across the country. This situation can be explained by lack of financial resources, qualified personnel and political priority regarding solid-waste disposal. Society demands a solution to these problems, as well as a new federal law providing guidelines for the management of solid waste. To meet these needs, the Brazilian Congress has started a special process to analyse all bills relating to the different types of waste to create the National Policy on Solid Waste Management Act. This paper focuses on the most important aspects of the new law now being discussed in Brazil, and comparing them with the contents of the legislation that is already in force in the European Community and in the United States of America.