Our rubbish: Someone else's problem?

This article reviews the problem of waste and how it has changed and increased during the last 100 years. In the search for a solution, it assesses the role of each element of the waste hierarchy ‐ waste minimisation, resource recovery (recycling, composting and energy recovery) and disposal. An innovative approach to the acute waste problem in Hampshire, known as Project Integra, is described. The article concludes that there are no easy answers and there will be an ongoing need for unpopular and contentious waste management facilities such as incinerators and landfill sites until there is a fundamental change in society.