For most governments in the developed world, the debate around waste management, an issue that has grown more pressing lately, has mostly centred around deterrence — that is to make wasting expensive by raising taxes to fund disposal. But Malaysia appears to believe in the opposite, according to Deputy Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Muttalib, who told Parliament this morning that local governments now pay for waste, in a bid to prevent indiscriminate dumping. What does this all mean?