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Hazardous Waste Essay

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Hazardous Waste

Hazardous waste and its proper disposal have become a major sociological problem today due to its capability of contaminating the area in which we live and its potential to be lethal to all living things. In order for the United States and the rest of the world to save itself from a potentially life threatening problem they must fix the causes which lead to the improper disposal of hazardous wastes and like materials. Some reasons that hazardous waste has become a problem in the United States today is due to the breakdown in enforcing laws for the proper disposal of such wastes, a lack of initiative on big companies behalf to spend money on proper disposal, and the ease of disposing of such wastes illegally.

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One reason behind such methods was that before 1976 there were no laws that required corporations to treat or dispose properly the hazardous wastes that they produced. In the capitalist nation we live in these corporations did not see any incentives to properly disposing of hazardous wastes. This would take coming up with new processes, building new equipment, and doing a lot of research that would in the end just cost these companies millions of dollars. Such companies found it much easier to dump these poisonous chemicals in the ground or into waterways, thereby washing their hands of the problem. Another method was to hire out “midnight-haulers”. These people would load up their trucks with hazardous wastes and while driving let it leak out onto the ground.

Another driving force behind the improper disposal of hazardous waste was the Mafia. “Organized crime controlled the solid waste disposal industry through the major trade associations, the relevant Teamster locals, and the connivance of political cronies”(Block, 1985, p.102). The Mafia has the ability to buy public officials with ease. This and their scare tactics led many EPA officials to do nothing about the illegal activities that took place. “Imagine an EPA inspector or state regulatory agent trying to deal with firms controlled by the members of the most powerful crime syndicates in the country”(Block, 1985, p.103).

All of these reasons led up to the illegal dumping of toxic

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