Before the twentieth century, most Americans and Europeans practiced habits of reuse and recycling that prevailed in agricultural communities. As fewer people created their own goods after the Industrial Revolution, expert knowledge of handiwork skills and materials became obsolete. Leftovers and scraps that were once considered valuable and reusable now became trash. The first organized incineration of trash began in England in 1874.
"I must do something" always solves more problems than "Something must be done."