In a rapidly urbanising world, efficient waste management has become a critical challenge for cities striving for sustainability and cleanliness. 

This study explores the experiences of six, highly urbanised European cities: Antwerp, Porto, Rotterdam, Florence, Hamburg and Barcelona. Each has implemented various types of underground waste containers but they all aim to optimise efficiency, improve urban aesthetics and enhance waste sorting. 

For each city, the study examines the system's impact in terms of organisation, performance, cleanliness and savings and sets out city-specific conclusions.

The study finds that while this type of waste system has advantages, implementation poses challenges. It's a very useful resource for city officials looking at changing waste collection methods.

This book looks at Flush and Forget (FaF) systems, a traditional method of dealing with sewage which mixes everything (urine, faeces, pharmaceuticals, antibiotic-resistant material, personal care products, forever-chemicals, microplastics and a wider range of other pollutants) together and transports it by water. FaF cannot deal with these components and incineration is generally the only option.

There are better, less wasteful alternatives; vacuum  toilets, for instance, 'flush' using the force of vacuum rather than water and separate faeces and urine at source. There is far less waste water to be treated, creating opportunities for anaerobic digestion for green biogas followed by hyperthermophilic composting of the residue, and saving huge amounts of clean water.