How to lay garbage to waste, safely

Garbage recycling and disposal charges are low in China. In Beijing, for example, a family in a community pays about 5 yuan (80 US cents) a month as garbage disposal fees, irrespective of the amount of waste it generates.

Therefore, there is need to not only work out a sound incentive-and-punishment mechanism, but also to implement the existing regulations more strictly. There are only two national regulations on garbage disposal - one for urban garbage in general and the other for urban construction waste - and they are not enough to deal with the problem.

There is need also to strengthen law enforcement on garbage treatment and recycling. Many cities in China once had high hygienic standards, but few of them have been able to maintain that. Two of the principal reasons for that are lack of strong administrative enforcement and lack of public participation.

Trash bins on streets and in households are another area that needs improvement. Germany, for instance, has green or blue bins for waste such as paper and cardboard packaging; yellow bins for plastic food containers, plastic bottles, plastic wrap, plastic bags, aluminum foil, aerosol cans and toothpaste tubes; brown bins for fruit and vegetable peels and leftovers, garden clippings, weeds, foliage and plants, and flowers; and glass containers for glass bottles and jars, and packaging made from glass. Apart from these, old clothes and shoes are regularly collected from curbs by charity organizations that inform residents of the pick-up date in advance, and civic personnel pick up unwanted appliances, old furniture and large household objects three to four times a year on pre-arranged dates. Even if after all this, a person has any more waste left, he/she can dump it in gray bins.

In contrast, China has only two kinds of bins, one for recyclable garbage and the other non-recyclables. Worse, some people care less about whether they are putting the waste in the right bin. Some others even dump trash outside the bins.

Chinese people need to reflect on their actions, and realize that public hygiene and sanitation is as important as personal hygiene and cleanliness. Moreover, awareness alone will not necessarily prompt a person to do the right thing until and unless he/she is willing to do it. Also, the fact that Beijing's streets do not have enough trash bins does not give people the right to use sidewalks, curbs and the base of trees as trash bins.

Awareness of and attitude toward sanitation is a cultural trait, which somehow seems deficient among many of today's Chinese. But can we live with it?

The author is a writer with China Daily.

E-mail: hebolin@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 10/12/2012 page9)