Workers collect garbage in an apartment compound in Shanghai on Aug. 28, 2018. （Photo/Sipaphoto.com)

After enforcing new regulations on domestic waste management, the amount of garbage has been reduced by 35 percent in some apartment compounds in Shanghai, and the recycling rate of garbage resources is reaching up to 45 percent, according to a recent reporter’s investigation.

In order to reduce the amount of municipal solid waste and tackle the challenge of resource utilization, Shanghai took the lead in implementing the compulsory classification of domestic waste in July 2019.

In the Zhongshan Apartment Compound in Changning District, Shanghai, the reporter did not see any trash cans in front of any of the buildings, but there was a small room on the left side of the gate of the compound which was the fixed drop-off site for domestic waste.

There were four types of rubbish containers with automatic doors at the drop-off site, and the residents disposed of waste according to their different categories.

According to statistics, the proportion of residents in the compound participating in garbage classification reached 100 percent, while the accuracy rate of source classification was 98 percent.

Furthermore, the amount of garbage was reduced by up to 35 percent, and the recycling rate of garbage resources was up to 45 percent after the domestic waste management rules went into force.

"Now, the proportion of people who bring their own lunch has risen sharply. If they order take-out food, they will not order too much. They will try to eat it all and reduce the amount of garbage they produce," said an employee from an office building in Jing'an District, Shanghai.

The "overall effect of classification is better than expected" in the past six months, according to one report. By November 2019, the disposal volume of dry garbage in Shanghai had been reduced by 33 percent, and the amount of wet garbage sorted had doubled to 8,710 tons per day, far exceeding the target of 5,520 tons per day.

Meanwhile, recyclables in Shanghai have increased 3.7 times compared with December 2018, and the amount of hazardous waste sorted has increased more than 13 times.