We live in a profligate world. Sustainability may require substantial change in our conception of natural resources. But what change should be made? And what may happen if basic social and cultural changes are not accom plished ? In this essay I focus on a very small part of the overall problem; I focus on municipal solid waste management. After reviewing some problems in defining the composition of municipal solid waste, its sources and its measurement, I explore the current state of its management. No matter if the solid waste management procedural priorities of "reduce, recycle, burn, landfill" comprise a hierarchy or a menu of choices, it locks managers in to a culture of disposal rather than a culture of resource management. But changes in culture, economics and regulation, while needed, are difficult to accomplish. If change were accomplished what would it mean? In the essay's final sections I explore two scenarios: the first examines business as usual, a managed disposal scenario with high levels of incineration and not much recycling additional to what we have now; the second explores cultural change necessary for a materials management scenario in which recycling of resources rather than their destruction predominates.
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