Putting together these Proceedings has afforded me the oppor tunity to re-read the papers which were presented last October here in Washington. In retrospect, the 1981 NATO/CCMS Symposium on Hazardous Waste Disposal maintains the impression of excellence expressed by the par ticipants at the actual event. The scope of the subject-matter and quality of its presentation indicate that we did attain the Sympos iums’s objective–a comprehensive review of the international status of hazardous waste disposal. It is my hope that in your own evaluation of these proceedings, you will share my conviction that the Symposium–conceived three years ago, approved by the NATO/CCMS Pilot Study experts in Oslo in October 1980, and taking place a year later–was indeed worthwhile and that this record of its proceedings will be useful for many years to come. John P. Lehman Washington, D.C. Editor June 1982 v CONTENTS OPENING REMARKS * * * * * * * * * 1 Dr. John W. Hernandez, Jr.