Why are some European cities better than others at dealing with garbage?

Why do some European countries manage their waste well, while others lurch from catastrophe to catastrophe? After all, the EU has issued directives for all its member states regarding waste disposal, so you’d expect some consistency.

European Commission: DG Environment: Waste http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/

Website: ACR+ (Association of Cities and Regions for Recycling and sustainable Resource management) http://www.acrplus.org/index.php/en/

---