Beijing cleans up its act with waste disposal, sorting

Demonstration community uses recycled refuse to increase awareness, beautify area

Beijing is implementing a complete cycle of garbage disposal methods - including waste separation, refuse transportation and classification and waste incineration - according to the officials in the Beijing Municipal Commission of City Management.

Yilianxuan in the capital's Xicheng district is one of the demonstration communities using the complete household waste sorting system. It covers an area of 74,211 square meters, of which 26,420 sq m is green space, according to Du Zhenguo, Party chief of the community.

The community has been promoting the recycling classification since 2010 and has established 24 garbage classification sites there, helping residents to sort their garbage into kitchen waste, recyclable waste and other categories.

Du said that the community has also formed a waste classification team, comprising more than 20 people. During daily rush hours in the mornings and evenings, they help residents to sort their waste and ensure its accurate classification.

They also distribute kitchen bins and special plastic bags to residents to help them maintain a habit of sorting kitchen waste, Du added.

In addition, information banners and literature on waste sorting can be seen in the community to help residents recognize the importance of the garbage classification and learn about classifying rubbish.

"We use waste tires and other recycled waste to decorate the community, which not only beautifies the community, but also improves residents' awareness of making better use of waste materials," Du said.

The household rubbish is shipped to the waste transfer station by special garbage collection vehicles.

Majialou waste transfer station, which belongs to Beijing Solid Waste Logistics Co, is one of the first batch of stations using an automated facility to separate solid waste in China, said Wang Lishan, head of the station.

Wang said his facility's daily garbage disposal capacity is 2,000 metric tons, and at present household waste from Dongcheng, Xicheng, Daxing and Chaoyang districts in Beijing is all classified at the waste transfer station.

It has four sorting systems to classify the garbage - using rollers to separate organic material and flammable material for fuel, magnets to sift out iron, wind power to select plastic, as well as manual sorting, Wang said.

After sorting, the three kinds of substances, including materials for fuel, organic materials and renewable resources, can be effectively used, which reduces the waste of resources, Wang said.

He added that a well-implemented garbage classification system can sort recyclable plastic from toxic plastic that is not suitable for reuse.

In addition, Wang said that the station uses a deodorization technology in a fully closed area, to completely eliminate the odor generated during the garbage disposal process.

After the garbage classifi - cation, the material for fuel is transported to a waste incineration power plant.

Lujiashan waste incineration power plant, built by Shougang Environmental Industry Co, can burn 1 million tons of garbage every year, said Zhao Shuming, assistant to the general manager of the plant.

Zhao said that the plant can generate 380 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year and can heat an area of 1 million sq m.

The recycled material for fuel is placed in a garbage pool for five to seven days before being burned to increase its energy value - the amount of heat produced by a complete combustion of fuel - he added.

To improve people's understanding of garbage incineration, the plant has organized many environmental activities and welcomes visitors on each Thursday, he said.

To date, it has received more than 28,000 visitors.

hanlu@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 06/29/2018 page24)