ABSTRACT
“Eden” or, more commonly, the “Garden of Eden,” made its first literal appearance in modern biblical texts. It was a place where everything grew, and all lived in harmony. It was irrigated by river water and mist since there was no rain. Initially, there were two unclothed ageless human custodians. But none of the texts mentioned waste. Perhaps there wasn’t any? If so, could then this idyllic ancient land be replicated globally, for billions of human inhabitants, simply by reducing or eliminating the waste associated with anthropogenic activity and behavior, thus enabling them to become immortal in naturist nirvana? But where was it? Eden’s most undisputed location is an area of modern-day 10Iraq, making it hard to imagine 8–10 billion people living in just 0.34% of global land space. More realistically, could “Reclaiming Eden” be envisaged as a manifestation of the United Nations’ vision of Transforming our World by 2030 into global habitats with “Peace, Prosperity and Partnership beyond security” for all? If so, will reducing waste, in the short time available, propel us toward this sustainability vision? It seems unlikely, yet by the end of the century, waste reduction will need to play a significant role in global efforts to provide more sustainable and prosperous communities. However, an accompanying vision is the mitigation of anthropogenic climate change by a complete global transition to renewable energy sources. This could lead to more waste being generated because of the disposal challenges associated with solar panels, electrochemical energy storage devices, and debris from the necessary increases in mining non-renewable metallic commodities. In terms of waste reduction, the two visions appear to be at odds. Thus, if the adequate and affordable provision of food, safe drinking water, and clean energy are to be realized, the visions will need to be reconciled, but how? A comprehensive written answer would need an encyclopedic approach so in this chapter the focus is limited to issues associated with municipal solid and food waste.
