Baeder discusses the fundamental gap he sees between perception and fact in evaluating chemical waste disposal in the United States. He asserts that waste disposed in the past is more hazardous than waste currently generated. Noting that the chemical industry is responsible and has demonstrated its concern for human health and environmental protection, Baeder focuses on the lack of strong chemical disposal regulations in the past and emphasizes the removal of these wastes, rather than a re-evaluation of current disposal practices. Hooker used Love Canal as a landfill site for industrial waste from 1942 to 1953; much of his talk centers on the problems at Love Canal.