The Italian city of Naples is well known for its waste management crisis that began in the mid-1990s and continues to re-erupt every few years. During the initial crisis, most landfills were already over capacity, and municipal workers refused to collect trash. The garbage piled up on the streets and caused rampant discontent among the citizens. Even the Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, became embroiled in this municipal issue. Disruptions to waste management processes can occur because of human action or because of dependence on energy infrastructure. In a number of places, waste management processes also feed back into energy infrastructure via various types of electric generation. Waste management and energy infrastructures, especially electricity, are examples of commonly co-dependent systems.

Most of what we buy—from pens to computers to dishwashers—is eventually thrown away. This trash gathers in large landfills where the embodied energy of the goods is not put to use. Proper waste management is a critical component of any society's well-being. A well-run waste management system keeps a city clean—crucial to dense environments remaining both pleasant and hygienic. Waste management is also an important part of an end-to-end energy strategy. Yet, removing trash from a city merely shifts the problem to someplace else. Storing trash in landfills outside of a city removes the problem from dense population centers but leaves toxic chemicals behind that can still leach into potable water supplies if a liner fails.