Students and their parents get involved in garbage sorting. [Photo by Yu Shaojie/icswb.com]

Changsha embraced a new chapter in its pursuit of a garbage sorting system after implementing the Changsha Domestic Garbage Classification Implementation Measures in 2018.

After the policy's implementation, garbage entering the city terminal decreased by 13.59 percent from 2017. Four main factors contributed to this accomplishment:

Perfecting institutions

In 2017, Changsha was listed as a top garbage sorting city. The new measures put forward the idea of a four-category sorting system and set forth a three-year plan for future progress. City departments, education and sanitation institutions, and businesses cooperated to move the project forward.

Demonstration communities

In 2016, nearly 60 residential communities were listed as garbage sorting pilot areas. Last August, the very first environmentally-friendly garbage sorting station opened. A total of 342 communities have been designated pilot areas and 62 demonstration communities have been established as well.

On-site garbage reduction

Yuelu district's large garden waste disposal site is the first on-site garbage reduction and recycling site. At the site, garden waste and abandoned furniture are smashed and turned into fuel. There is also a farmer's market in Tianxin district where perishable leaves and peels are crushed, hydrated, dried, and turned into organic fertilizer.

Public participation

During school vacations, volunteers from the Happy Volunteer Organization encourage teenagers to visit the first waste transfer station, landfills, and dangerous material treatment plants. Many teenagers have become aware of the importance of garbage sorting and committed to promoting it.