In the 20th century, the industrial nations were devoted to satisfying our ever-growing consumer needs. To do so, they extracted and processed extensive natural resources. Today, we know that these resources are limited and that extractive and manufacturing activities are responsible for our major pollution problems: water pollution, global warming due to greenhouse gases, soil contamination and erosion, ecosystem degradation and loss of biodiversity. Part of the solution to these problems is sound residual materials management. …
