You probably think that the day-to-day business of running a municipality is boring – zoning hearings, council meetings, utility commission hearings, etc. – and for the most part you're right. But boring stuff is often important, and when it's no longer boring you probably have a problem. Take, for instance, Kodiak, Alaska's "Fecal Cliff":

The city has turned to composting as its solution, but a composting plant in Middle Bay has been hotly opposed. A competing plant design to be housed at the landfill will not be ready for several months.

In the meantime, [officials] have come up with a tentative agreement. Sludge will be stockpiled at the landfill until a temporary composting plant can be set up. This temporary facility cannot create garden-safe compost, but it can solidify the sludge to a point where it can be safely disposed of in the landfill.