Growth in Singapore’s population and economy have contributed to an increase in the amount of solid waste disposed of by about seven-fold from 1,260 tonnes a day in 1970. With waste quantities projected to continue increasing with growing affluence and population, Singapore's main challenge in solid waste management is the setting aside of land for waste disposal in view of the limited land stock in Singapore.  Singapore has therefore adopted the following strategies encapsulated in the diagram below for a more sustainable solid waste management system.

Sustainable solid waste management involves the people, private and public sectors. Working hand in hand with these key stakeholders, NEA has developed a range of initiatives and programmes to curb waste growth. At source where the waste is generated, recyclables are sorted and retrieved for processing to conserve resources. The remaining waste is collected and sent to waste-to-energy plants for incineration. Incineration reduces the waste by up to 90 per cent, saving landfill space, and the heat is recovered to produce steam that propels turbine-generators to generate electricity, providing up to 3 per cent of the island’s electricity needs. The incineration ash and other non-incinerable wastes are then transported to the Tuas Marine Transfer Station (TMTS) from where they are barged to Semakau Landfill for final disposal.