The General Law for the prevention and comprehensive management of waste is the highest law in the territory of Mexico regarding waste management. This law covers the management of both non-hazardous solid urban waste and the management of hazardous waste. It also considers a third classification of waste called special management waste and is based on Article 4 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States and the General Law of Ecological Balance and environmental protection. It was promulgated on October 8, 2003 during the presidency of Vicente Fox Quezada.[1]​.

The main precedent for this law is the General Law of ecological balance and environmental protection published in 1988, in which some of the functions contained in this law are already mentioned, such as the distribution of powers regarding waste management and classification. However, it was considered for Mexico's environmental policy and in order to guarantee sustainable development that there should be a specific law on waste management, which became a reality in 2003.

The general law is based on a series of principles among which are:

1.- Prevent, value and carry out comprehensive management under criteria of environmental, technological, economic and social efficiency

2.- Shared responsibility of producers, consumers and authorities

3.- The waste generator must assume the costs of its disposal

4.- Places that have been affected by inadequate waste disposal must be attended to so that they stop being a source of pollution.

5.- It is essential that production processes are carried out under conditions of environmental efficiency, in terms of use of resources, inputs and generation of waste.

This law sets out in a general and concise manner the general provisions applicable within Mexico regarding waste. The powers, coordination and attributions of the three levels of government and between the institutions.

The Law classifies waste in three ways:[2]​.

The instruments of the prevention policy and their comprehensive management, the management plans and the schemes for social participation and popular complaint, as well as the responsibility for contamination and the remediation of contaminated sites, are also described.[3]​.