(1) The Legislature finds that:

(a) Over one million five hundred thousand (1,500,000) tons of municipal solid waste are generated in Mississippi each year of which an estimated fifty thousand (50,000) tons is not even collected for disposal;

(b) On the average, each Mississippian currently discards approximately four (4) pounds of municipal solid waste each day;

(c) There are currently ninety-eight (98) commercial nonhazardous solid waste management facilities in this state;

(d) Most of the permitted sanitary landfill capacity will be used within the next ten (10) years;

(e) Monthly household collection fees have increased approximately fifteen percent (15%) in the last year. The costs of nonhazardous solid waste management will increase significantly due to decreased landfill capacity and more stringent federal requirements for nonhazardous solid waste management facilities. More stringent federal requirements may force an estimated eighty percent (80%) of the existing permitted facilities to close;

(f) Mississippians are spending approximate Fifty-five Million Dollars ($55,000,000.00) on nonhazardous solid waste management;

(g) Inefficient and improper methods of managing nonhazardous solid waste create hazards to the public health, cause pollution of air and water resources, constitute a waste of natural resources, have an adverse effect on land values and create public nuisances;

(h) Problems of nonhazardous solid waste management have become a matter statewide in scope and necessitate state action to assist local governments in identifying, financing, and improving methods and processes for more efficient management and collection of nonhazardous solid waste; and

(i) The economic and population growth of our state and improvements in the standard of living enjoyed by our population have resulted in a rising tide of unwanted and discarded materials.

(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the provisions of Sections 17-17-201 through 17-17-235 shall:

(a) In order to protect the public health, safety and well-being of its citizens and to protect and enhance the quality of its environment, institute and maintain a comprehensive program for state and local solid waste management planning which will assure that solid waste management facilities meet the needs of the state and its localities, whether publicly or privately operated, are planned, developed and constructed in a timely manner;

(b) Reaffirm the state’s policy of minimizing the amount of nonhazardous solid waste being generated and managed at facilities in the state and the commitment to reach the state’s goal of reducing and minimizing waste generated in Mississippi by a minimum of twenty-five percent (25%) by January 1, 1996;

(c) Provide that a county shall have the power and its duty shall be to ensure the availability of adequate permitted management capacity for the nonhazardous solid waste which is generated within its boundaries;

(d) Establish that a municipality shall have the power and its duty shall be to assure the proper and adequate collection, transportation and storage of the nonhazardous solid waste generated or present within the area served by such municipality and in cooperation with the county, to assure adequate capacity for the processing, recycling and disposal of nonhazardous solid waste generated or present within the area served by such municipality; and

(e) Reaffirm that the state shall have the power and its duty shall be to regulate the management of nonhazardous solid waste and ensure that all nonhazardous solid waste management planning results in strategies for environmentally sound nonhazardous solid waste management systems.

(3) It is further the intent of the Legislature that, in light of the impending issuance of the Final Subtitle D regulations, the existing laws and regulations with regard to permitted sanitary landfills should be consistently enforced.