No matter what extreme measures are taken, cellulose-nitrate film will eventually decompose and be lost forever. New raw stock is no longer being manufactured, so whatever still exists is all that there is left. Unfortunately, because of cellulose-nitrates flammable characteristics, many films (all from the late 19th century and first half of the 20th century) have been lost due to neglect and devasting fires that wiped out entire collections. For example, the Cinematheque Francaise experienced a brutal fire in 1959. On a hot summer day, films had been left stacked up in an open courtyard awaiting transport to another property, staging the classic conditions for nitrate fire. All of the films burned fiercely and nothing could be done to extinquish the flames other than wait for them to recede. Numerous films were lost and the most unfortunate part, is that casualties were hard to account for because of weak record-keeping. The flammability of nitrate film puts a damper on its reputaion, but it is a fact that has to be resolved with appropriate construction, HVAC systems, and extreme care by skilled personnel.

Countless amounts of energy and resources for controlling environments, constructing buildings, and providing materials, and operating machinery are expended only to arrive at a final output of hazardous waste. Once the film reaches the end of its usable life it has no economic value and all that can be done is to burn it; there is no looping back into the system. Even worse, waste not only refers to the classic films of the 1920s that were put on life support until decay set in, but also refers to the incalculable number of discarded films that never experienced the limelight of the theater because of defects from manufacturing or poor treatment.