(415 ILCS 15/2) (from Ch. 85, par. 5952)

Sec. 2. (a) The General Assembly finds:

(1) that parts of this State have inadequate and rapidly diminishing disposal capacity for municipal waste;

(2) that counties should have the primary responsibility to plan for the management of municipal waste within their boundaries to insure the timely development of needed waste management facilities and programs;

(3) that waste reduction and recycling are preferable to the disposal of municipal waste;

(4) that removing certain materials from the municipal waste stream will decrease the flow of waste to sanitary landfills, aid in the conservation and recovery of valuable resources, conserve energy in the manufacturing process, increase the supply of reusable materials for the State's industries, and reduce substantially the need for municipal waste incineration facilities and contribute to their overall combustion efficiency, thereby resulting in a significant cost savings in the planning, construction and operation of these facilities; and

(5) that solid waste planning should be encouraged to take place on a multi-county, regional basis and through inter-governmental cooperation agreements whereby various units of local government within a region determine the best methods and locations for disposal of solid waste. This amendatory Act of 1992 shall not be construed to impact the authority of units of local government in the siting of solid waste disposal facilities.

(b) It is the purpose of this Act to provide incentives for decreased generation of municipal waste, to require certain counties to develop comprehensive waste management plans that place substantial emphasis on recycling and other alternatives to landfills, to encourage municipal recycling and source reduction, and to promote composting of yard waste.

(Source: P.A. 87-330; 87-906.)