In the past, open dump burning has been the solid waste disposal method used by many small rural towns because from a strict monetary perspective, it was the least cost alternative available to them. Now, due to environmental legislation prohibiting open dumps, they must ex-tablish new disposal facilities. The traditional environmentally acceptable alternatives of incineration and/or sanitary landfill necessarily involve increased disposal costs for these towns, with the increases being especially pronounced for towns in areas like New Hampshire where fuel oil prices are high and suitable sites for sanitary landfill are scarce.

Communities across the country are faced with the legal requirements to reduce water pollution from domestic and industrial wastes discharged into streams and rivers. Approximately 7½ billion gallons of wastewater were produced daily in the United States in 1972. This volume is estimated to quadruple over the next 50 years.