NationStates Jolt Archive

Looking for support for this proposal. This is a serious proposal!
Cosmic Waste Service
A resolution to increase the quality of the world's environment, at the expense of industry.


Category: Environmental
Industry Affected: All Businesses
Proposed by: _Susa_

Description: SEEING that many UN nations have the problem of excess waste and trash;
and SEEING that this waste may be toxic and harmful to people and the environment;
and SEEING that dumps and landfills are rapidly overflowing and many are already way beyond capacity;
let it be RESOLVED, that UN Starships will arrive on a regular basis with a scheduled arrival to take waste products from these nations and blast them into space, to be released into the universe, where they will be of no harm to the world.

How will this scheme be funded?

The amount of fuel that would have to be burnt in order to lift all our waste out of Earth's gravitational well would be so immense as to significantly deplete our resources and probably exacerbate other environmental problems related to air pollution, including global warming.

Some countries will not have an infrastructure developed enough to efficiently transport all waste to central spaceports.

What about countries roleplaying that they exist in space? Won't they have something to say about being bombarded with our rubbish?

With so many spacecraft launches, it is statistically very likely that there will be some accidents. What are we going to do when a ship carrying the toxic waste you mention explodes in mid-air, showering people over a wide area with the stuff?

Finally, this reminds me of an episode of Futurama. Does anyone else remember the problems this kind of solution caused?

Finally, this reminds me of an episode of Futurama. Does anyone else remember the problems this kind of solution caused?
OOC: That one was on last Sunday (29th) over here.

This is already covered by a national issue, and should not even be addressed by the UN.

James Moehlman
Asst. Mgr. ico UN Affairs
The Militant Mercantile Alliance of Greenspoint

---Post deleted by NationStates Moderators---

..and what about the seagulls that hang around all landfill sites, anyone spare a thought for them...........

Is the technology available for this plan?
Do the UN have the necessary space vehicles to accomplish this task?

Of course, no one bothers to care about the poor future-tech nations like myself who have chosen to reside off world. While shooting your junk off into space might seem like a good idea to you dirt clodders, sooner or later that same trash is going to hit one of us. How would YOU feel if a 40-ton dumpster of disposable diapers landed in your downtown?

I havent got that issue yet...

You must have. I've rec'd it several times and your nation is older than mine. It's the one that talks about the huge landfills, and gives options to pay other nations to take your trash, or let em build higher and higher and market them as tourist attractions. The first option mentions recycling and sending the trash off into space in rockets.

Space has yet to be explored, and will never be fully explored, therefore, the impact of sending trash into space can never be calculated accurately. The risks may be too much of a risk.

TH will not support this proposal.

Let's not forget the countries residing on the planet who can't afford to support such a thing anyway.

On top of that, aren't there enough problems around anyway? The last thing anyone needs is some silly fool launching their garbage into space, only to watch as it collides with a disgruntled off world nation, starting _another_ war.

There's a word for this. It's called "recycle."

-Secondary Minister James Allen Pope, DTW