Compost heaps have no place in an increasingly urban society, and open-air burning has been relinquished because of the air pollution it creates, but the growth of waste in a prosperous, industrialized nation is usually faster than that of the population.
過去垃圾都以堆肥、焚燒或掩埋處理，隨著都市化程度提高，堆肥在都會區無用武之地，露天焚燒也因製造空氣汙染而被淘汰；但社會在工業發達、生活富裕後，垃圾量的成長率通常比人口還快。