It is found and declared that the people of the state of Connecticut have the right to a clean and wholesome environment; that prevailing solid waste disposal practices generally, throughout the state, result in unnecessary environmental damage, waste valuable land and other resources, and constitute a continuing hazard to the health and welfare of the people of the state; that local governments responsible for waste disposal services are becoming hard pressed to provide adequate services at reasonable costs, without damage or hazard to the environment and the loss of useful resources; that locally organized voluntary recycling programs have shown that solid wastes produced in the state of Connecticut contain recoverable resources; that technology and methods now exist to dispose of solid wastes and recover resources with commensurate environmental benefits; that coordinated large-scale processing of solid wastes may be necessary in order to achieve maximum environmental and economic benefits for the people of the state; that the amounts of solid waste being produced within the state of Connecticut are adequate to sustain such large-scale processing; that the geography and population density of the state are such as to enable and facilitate the effective and economic regional accumulation of solid wastes; that the development of systems and facilities and the use of the technology necessary to initiate large-scale processing of solid wastes have become logical and necessary functions to be assumed by state government; that the provision of solid waste disposal services to local governments at reasonable cost, through the use of state governmental powers and capabilities, would supply valuable assistance to such local governments; and, that, because of the foregoing, the provision of statutory authorization for the necessary state structure, which can take initiative and appropriate action to provide the necessary systems, facilities, technology and services for solid waste management and resources recovery is a matter of important public interest and that it is the purpose and intent of the General Assembly to be and remain cognizant not only of its responsibility to authorize and establish the necessary state and local structure and powers for the effective accomplishment of solid waste management and resources recovery, but also of its responsibility to monitor and supervise the activities and operations of the state authority created by this chapter, and the exercise of the powers conferred upon such authority by virtue of this chapter.