(a)Findings. —The General Assembly finds and declares:
(1) That the people of the State have the right to a clean and wholesome environment;
(2) That prevailing solid waste disposal practices generally, throughout the State, result in unnecessary environmental damage, substantially degrade surface and groundwater, waste valuable land and other resources and constitute a continuing hazard to the health and welfare of the people of the State;
(3) That local governments responsible for waste disposal services are becoming hard pressed to provide adequate services at reasonable costs, without damage or hazard to the environment and the loss of useful resources;
(4) That as a result of inadequate solid waste collection and disposal systems rural areas of the State are particularly subjected to esthetic degradation because of litter;
(5) That locally organized voluntary recycling programs have shown that solid wastes produced in the State contain recoverable resources;
(6) That technology and methods now exist to dispose of solid wastes and recover resources with commensurate environmental benefits;
(7) That coordinated large-scale processing of solid wastes may be necessary in order to achieve maximum environmental and economic benefits for the people of the State;
(8) That the amounts of solid waste being produced within the State are adequate to sustain such large-scale processing;
(9) That the geography and population density of the State are such as to enable and facilitate the effective and economic regional accumulation of solid wastes;
(10) That the development of systems and facilities and the use of the technology necessary to initiate large-scale processing of solid wastes have become logical and necessary functions to be assumed by state government;
(11) That the provision of solid waste disposal services to local governments at reasonable cost, through the use of state governmental powers and capabilities, would supply valuable assistance to such local governments; and
(12) That, because of the foregoing, the provision of statutory authorization for the necessary state structure, which can take initiative and appropriate action to provide the necessary systems, facilities, technology and services for solid waste management and resources recovery is a matter of important public interest and that it is the purpose and intent of the General Assembly to be and remain cognizant not only of its responsibility to authorize and establish accomplishment of solid waste management and resources recovery, but also of its responsibility to monitor and supervise the activities and operations of the state Authority created by this chapter, and the exercise of the powers conferred upon such Authority by virtue of this chapter.
(b)Policy. —The General Assembly declares the following to be the policies of the State:
(1) That maximum resources recovery from solid waste and maximum recycling and reuse of such resources in order to protect, preserve and enhance the environment of the State shall be considered environmental goals of the State;
(2) That solid waste disposal and resources recovery facilities and projects are to be implemented either by the State or under state auspices, in furtherance of these goals;
(3) That appropriate governmental structure, processes and support are to be provided so that effective state systems and facilities for solid waste management and large-scale resources recovery may be developed, financed, planned, designed, constructed and operated for the benefit of the people, municipalities and counties of the State;
(4) That private industry is to be utilized to the maximum extent feasible to perform planning, design, management, collection, construction, operation, manufacturing and marketing functions related to solid waste disposal and resources recovery, and to assist in the development of industrial enterprises based upon resources recovery, recycling and reuse;
(5) That long-term negotiated contracts between the State and persons and business entities may be utilized as an incentive for the development of industrial and commercial enterprise based on resources recovery within the State;
(6) That solid waste collection and disposal services shall be provided for municipal and regional authorities and persons in the State, at reasonable cost, by state systems and facilities where such services are considered necessary and desirable in accordance with the statewide solid waste management plan and that any revenues received from the payment of the costs of such services otherwise from the operation of state systems and facilities shall be redistributed to the users of such services provided that the Authority has determined that all contractual obligations related to such systems and facilities have been met and that such revenues are surplus and not needed to provide necessary support for such systems and facilities;
(7) That provision shall be made for planning, research and development, and appropriate innovation in the design, management and operation of the State’s systems and facilities for solid waste management, in order to permit continuing improvement and provide adequate incentives and processes for lowering operation and other costs;
(8) That the Authority established pursuant to this chapter shall have responsibility for implementing solid waste disposal and resources recovery systems and facilities and solid waste management services where necessary and desirable throughout the State in accordance with a state solid waste management plan and applicable statutes and regulations;
(9) That infectious waste be disposed of by the Authority on a statewide basis in accordance with applicable statutes, regulations and inspection procedures approved by the Department of Health and Social Services and issued by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to assure adequate and proper disposal in a manner to protect the public health and welfare;
(10) That actions and activities performed or carried out by the Authority or its contractors in accordance with this chapter shall be in conformity with the state solid waste management plan;
(11) That these policies and purposes are hereby declared to be in the public interest and this chapter to be necessary and for the public benefit, as a matter of legislative determination.
(c)Purpose. —The General Assembly declares the following to be the purpose of this chapter:
(1) That a statewide comprehensive program for management, storage, collection, transportation, utilization, processing and disposal of solid waste be established.
(2) That a program for the maximum recovery and reuse of materials and energy resources derived from solid wastes be established.
(3) That a program for protecting the land, air, surface and groundwater resources of the State from depletion and degradation caused by improper disposal of solid waste be established.
(4) That a program in cooperation with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, or other federal and state agencies, for the demonstration of systems and techniques of materials recovery, market development and reuse be established.
(5) That a statewide program for disposal of infectious waste, giving special attention to the management and operation of an infectious waste facility, be established.
(6) That a statewide solid waste management plan be developed and implemented by the Authority.