Integrated Waste Management System for Environmental Protection and Sustainability of Resources

Modern civilization is defined by the unsustainable consumption of most of the Earth’s natural resources and the contribution with different kinds of hazards to the air, water and soil. More than two centuries since the industrial revolution have caused the accumulation of different contaminants in different forms in most of the environmental compartments, therefore, there is an urgent need to shift this trend to sustainable solutions where protecting our environment needs to be in the core of new strategies. Waste management is one of the major areas where development towards sustainable development has a potential by implementing new strategies to protect the environment and also providing societies with secondary resources for the continuation of living on this Earth. In this chapter, an integrated waste management system based on the European hierarchy is introduced as an input towards reducing the impact of losing virgin materials as wastes. In addition, international and European regulations and policies are also presented as a crucial tool to save the environment.