forestry and ecology, surveying forests, reviewing and implementing management plans for protected areas, and supporting government environmental offices, public awareness programs, and integrated conservation and development programs. Modernly, domestic timber harvesting remains legal though subject to strict regulation and inspection. Bhutan had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 8.85/10, ranking it 16th globally out of 172 countries. Urban environments Bhutan faces challenges in its urban environments due to increased urbanization, industrialization, and economic development. Through 2011, many relatively urban areas lacked designated landfills and effective waste disposal systems, prompting residents to burn garbage, dump it, or simply throw it off a cliff. In 2012 unsound disposal of waste reached 52% of generated waste. Though passed in 2009, regulation under the Waste Prevention and Management Act was finalized in 2011. The regulations aimed to cover refuse segregation, including industrial, chemical, radioactive, and electronic waste, which theretofore were mixed with general refuse. The 2011 regulation also prohibited landfills and dumping within national parks, protected areas, biological corridors, and human settlements. With its relatively high population and powerful local government, the urban thromde of Thimphu has often been at the forefront of urban environmental issues in Bhutan. Urban waste As of 2011, Thimphu alone produced some of waste daily, at an average household output of ; this represented a nearly threefold increase over the three prior years. Thimphu thromde authorities estimated 49 percent of Thimphu's total refuse was biodegradable organic waste; 25.3 percent was paper; 13.7 percent was plastics; and 3.6 percent was glass. The capital's only designated dumping site, Memelakha Landfill, met its capacity in 2002, leading to overflowing and illegal dumping there and at other sites around Thimphu. Through 2009, the government reaction was a "polluters pay" policy that failed to achieve its desired results. To more effectively approach refuse issues and to address different varieties of waste, Thimphu began a subsidized pilot project for sorting between biodegradable and non-biodegradable refuse. Thimphu municipal authorities also addressed the ubiquitous plastic in its refuse with a shredder for PET bottles to facilitate transport to recycling in India. Still, compliance with proper waste disposal remained a challenge within all segments, from street vendors to ordinary citizens. In the late 2000s, Thimphu experienced steady growth despite water shortages. Areas downstream from Thimphu along the Wangchu River deteriorated significantly because of human waste and refuse. In a November 2011 effort to combat downstream