§ 23-19-2 - Legislative findings.
SECTION 23-19-2
§ 23-19-2 Legislative findings. – The general assembly recognizes and declares that:
(1) The people of the state desire to promote a clean andwholesome environment;
(2) Many municipalities have serious solid waste managementproblems and face difficulty in providing adequate services at reasonable costs;
(3) Inefficient practices and poor management techniquesresult in pollution problems and environmental deterioration and result in awaste of land and other valuable resources;
(4) Solid waste management problems are statewide in scopeand necessitate state action through technical assistance and leadership in theapplication of new and improved methods and processes to reduce the amount ofsolid waste that must be disposed of, and to promote environmentally acceptableand economically sound solid waste management;
(5) The continuing technological processes and improvementsin the methods of manufacture, packaging, and marketing of consumer products,has resulted in an increased volume, and in a change in the characteristics, ofmaterial being discharged;
(6) The economic and population growth of the state and theimprovements in the standards of living enjoyed by the people of the state haverequired increased industrial production together with related commercialoperations to meet these needs, all of which has resulted in an increasingvolume of discharged materials;
(7) The failure or inability to economically recover andrecycle materials and energy resources from solid waste results in theunnecessary waste and depletion of natural resources;
(8) Provision for necessary, cost efficient, andenvironmentally sound systems, facilities, technology, and services for solidwaste management and resource recovery is a matter of important public interestand concern, and action taken in this regard will be for a public purpose andwill benefit the public welfare;
(9) The landfill disposal of solid waste, even under the mostideal conditions, creates a long-term potential for pollution and environmentaldegradation;
(10) Recycling facilities must be integrated into thedevelopment of all solid waste disposal facilities under the jurisdiction ofthe Rhode Island resource recovery corporation;
(11) The central landfill is a public resource of limited andfinite capacity which the state, as guardian and trustee for its people, hasthe right and the obligation to preserve for the use of its people; and
(12) The state, by creating the Rhode Island resourcerecovery corporation and through it operating the central landfill, is aparticipant in the landfill services market and has entered that market for thepurpose of serving the citizens, residents, and municipalities of this state.