Question: what is the first and ideally most important stage in the waste management hierarchy?
Answer: In the first legislative proposals of 2006 the European Commission suggested a 3-step hierarchy composed of 1- Prevention and Reuse, 2- Recycling and Recovery (with incineration) and 3- Disposal. ... Among engineers, a similar hierarchy of waste management has been known as ARRE strategy: avoid, reduce, recycle, eliminate.