The NIMBY Phenomenon

Finding places to put landfills is not easy. Not many people want to live near a landfill, an attitude sometimes called the NIMBY phenomenon - this means "Not In My Back Yard!" Many people believe that landfills and their operation will result in traffic, noise, dust, litter, unattractive neighborhoods, groundwater contamination and hazardous waste pollution. While fears may have come true in the past, modern landfill design, construction and management can prevent most of these problems. Unfortunately, the NIMBY phenomenon also applies when cities try to find locations for recycling centers and municipal composting facilities.