by Ben Hughes

Created on: February 21, 2009

Yes, they do. But ending this answer to the question here would be an injustice to the problem of waste and waste management.

Interestingly, the purpose of landfills only seems to be to dispose of our waste; and to this end, they meet their objective. Landfills dispose of rubbish and prevent us from leaving it in our houses and streets and polluting the local environment.

But the fact that landfills work is also part of the problem. Their success has meant that everything was dumped in the mountains, hillsides and holes, which has caused problems of its own. The BBC reported in 2007 that the UK has become the landfill dustbin of Europe' because of the tendency and ease of dumping rubbish rather than recycling.

Legislation such as the EU Landfill Directive (1999) and the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (2007), has gone some way to encourage greater recycling and safe disposal of certain wastes, but countries in continental Europe are still generally ahead of the UK with attitudes to recycling.

As well as being an eyesore, landfills are also environmentally unfriendly. They release toxins into the atmosphere, through rotting rubbish emitting explosive gases and polluting liquids. Friends of the Earth also identify the contribution of methane emissions to climate change. This is exacerbated by the UK law which permits low-level nuclear waste to be disposed in landfill sites alongside regular rubbish from dustbins.

Added to this are the threats to our quality of life which have been recognised by Friends of the Earth. These include the problems for local communities such as increased traffic pollution, noise, smoke, dust, litter and pests which are attracted by the increased amounts of waste.

Landfills can also be filled with rocks and soil, which can be used later for specific purposes such as house building. However, these landfills haven't always been stabilised and secured and in some regions of the world which are prone to earthquakes, they are an unsteady hazard.

Added to this, Friends of the Earth say that European laws are forcing governments to send less waste to landfill sites by raising landfill tax in an attempt to increase recycling rates. However, in some instances it's having the effect of more waste being disposed of illegally rather than relatively safely through landfill.

There are also efforts to produce biodegradable waste from landfills in an effort to make greener alternatives to simple landfill, through producing such things as fuel for green power stations.

So although landfill is meeting its aim and can still be considered better than incineration this hardly means it's the right option. Yes, it meets its aim; but no, I don't think it's the best option in many cases, there aren't enough incentives to reuse and recycle, it's not environmentally friendly and they are used too freely. But until governments and regulating authorities work by their principles and put the environment first rather than votes and clinging to power, things are unlikely to change.

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