1. Scope

Special waste management planning and environment-oriented waste disposal are vital requirements in all countries. In developing countries (DCs) the associated functions and problems are intensified because of the general shortage of financial resources, which in most economies are applied where they are most urgently needed, or where policy-makers consider they are most urgently needed. Looking at the problem from a short-term perspective, the environmentally acceptable disposal of hazardous waste is often not considered a priority. This attitude often gives rise to adverse long-term effects on man and the environment, which at a later point in time require further resources, sometimes more than those initially saved, to put them right.

Effective planning of special waste management is also limited by the lack of suitable technical solutions, either for financial reasons or because of the lack of an administrative system for waste disposal or because of deficiencies in training. The situation is often characterised by administrative and organisational weaknesses, by inadequate control and sanctioning capacities and failures in the implementation of the ‘polluter pays’ principle as a guideline for environmental policy.

Only if identified waste with a known waste composition is recorded, checked and transported in suitable containers and, after prior examination of the options for reuse, directed to the most suitable type of disposal, can the inevitable hazards and environmental effects of special waste disposal be reduced to a minimum.

The present environmental brief sets out the main effects and possible measures associated with special waste management and disposal. This document is largely based on the study published jointly by the World Bank, WHO and UNEP "The Safe Disposal of Hazardous Wastes - The Special Needs and Problems of Developing Countries, World Bank Technical Paper Number 93, Vol. I, II, III, Washington D.C., 1989".

The disposal of radioactive waste is not dealt with, as this requires very specific measures.