The problem is that we don't live in an ideal environment. We live in a world that we inherited from our ancestors. There are a hundred years worth of hazardous materials that our ancestors buried and have become our responsibility. We also live in an industrialized society. We all wear clothes, drive cars and live in homes made of wood, steel, aluminum, plastics etc.
Industry necessarily produces waste in the manufacture of our basic needs.
Until some new technology is found for dealing with or eliminating hazardous waste, disposal facilities will be necessary to protect both humans and the environment. All humans who play a part in producing hazardous waste must share the burden of our society's waste, not just the poor and minorities. Others, such as Waste Management accept the premise that for whatever reason, there is a disproportional distribution of environmental assets and liabilities among racial groups, minorities and economically depressed communities. Michael Girrard of Arnold and Porter Law Firm and incoming chairman of the Environmental Law Section of NY State Bar Association has devised an all new concept for selecting sites for new hazardous waste facilities. Most communities and states reject the idea of having a hazardous waste facility in their midst because they feel that it will endanger their health and devalue their property.