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 …showed first 75 words of 401 total…

…showed last 75 words of 401 total…in total residual materials generated, the reduction rate had reached only 10.8 percent, a far cry from the 50 percent initially sought. The 1989 policy also targeted safer disposal methods, but Québec's regulatory standards governing waste disposal were only reviewed for new disposal sites authorized from 1993 onward under the environmental assessment procedure. The Québec Residual Materials Management Policy therefore proposed a management system that is more environmentally sound while supporting Québec's social and economic development.