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A Brief History of Waste Management 23
neighborhood dump. Administrators replied by posting signs reading, “Take your refuse further out
or you will be fined.” The signs included arrows showing the way out of the city (Kelly, 1973).
During the rule of the Caesars (27 B.C.E.to C.E. 410), thousands of carcasses from gladiatorial
combats (both human and animal) were disposed in open pits at the city’s outskirts. The only known
law in existence at that time concerning waste disposal regarded the management and disposal of
fecal matter. The sanitation subcommittee of the Roman Senate decreed that fecal matter was not
to be disposed of in carts or open pits (Kelly, 1973).
The Romans had gods for every occasion, and they unwittingly had a goddess dedicated to the
consequence of their indiscriminate waste disposal, the Goddess of Fever. In spite of their sacrifices
at the altars, Rome was a victim to plagues in 23 B.C.E., C.E. 65, 79, and 162. The Romans did not
yet fully grasp the connection between waste and infectious diseases. During the first century C.E.,
Roman emperors began to realize that municipal solid wastes posed a significant public health con-
cern. Emperor Domitian (81–96 C.E.) ordered pest control, because his advisors noticed that lack of
cleanliness in the city was associated with an increase in the population of rats, lice, bedbugs, and
other vermin (Bilitewski et al., 1997). Emperor Vespasian (69–79 C.E.) ordered the installation of
public toilets, which were designed to have running water beneath (Kelly, 1973). By 300 C.E., there
were 144 public toilets in Rome (Bilitewski, 1997).
Some researchers claim that over time, waste accumulation may have contributed to the bury-
ing of cities, which subsequently were rebuilt. The old Roman section of the city of Bath, England,
is 12 to 20 ft beneath the existing city (Wilson, 1977).
The population of Rome eventually grew to over one and a quarter million. At this point, munic-
ipal wastes could no longer be handled adequately. Some historians have suggested that the intense
odor of these wastes may have driven the aristocracy from the city into the mountains or along the
seaside. It is speculated that such a decentralization of power may have precipitated the decline of
the empire (Alexander, 1993). Additionally, the growing mounds of wastes outside the city walls
are thought to have compromised the defense of the city (Vesilind et al., 2002).

2.5 EUROPE
With the end of the Roman Empire came the loss of any semblance of order and discipline that had
been instituted by the imposition of laws and the presence of an organized, active military. Equally
significant were the loss of technical knowledge and the science of basic hygiene. As a result, from
the Dark Ages through the Renaissance, there was no organized method of waste disposal, with
street dumping among the most common practices (Kelly, 1973). Routine procedure was to simply
dump wastes, including fecal matter, directly out of a window (Figure 2.1). These materials would
decompose naturally and eventually become incorporated into the unpaved street. In some
locations, a centralized receptacle was established directly in front of homes for the general dump-
ing of sewage and other wastes.
As the population in Europe surged and also became urbanized, the impact of wastes became
more acute. In London, each household established its own waste heap outdoors. According to one
report on London’s sanitation (Greater London Council, 1969):

As the population density rose and pressure on land within the urban area increased a street system
evolved. The pattern of refuse disposal changed accordingly. Everything from domestic refuse to cin-
ders from foundries, offal from shambles [slaughterhouses] and manure from stables went to the streets
where it was placed in the central kennel or gutter.

It was unsafe to burn wastes within the city due to the proximity of countless wooden structures
(Wilson, 1977). As a result, wastes remained in place. In 1297, an order was issued that required all
tenants to maintain a clear pavement in front of their dwelling. The order was largely ignored.
However, much waste was burned in household open fires. During the mid-1300s, scavenging kites