Beijing Household Waste Output Up 8% YOY - 90% Of 6.7 Million Tons Goes Directly To Landfills - AFP

[hatrack]

Every night, Mrs Wang finds herself shuttered in her northwest Beijing apartment because of the stench from the nearby dump. "For at least one hour, we don't open our windows as the smell from the rubbish tip is horrendous," said the frustrated young mother, standing outside her son's school in a city in the midst of a garbage crisis.

China's capital still relies heavily on burying its garbage -- in 2008, 90 percent of the more than 6.7 million tonnes of domestic waste in Beijing was put in landfills. Municipal authorities, recognising that the city's dumps are full to the brim, have announced plans to build a series of new waste treatment centres, using methods such as incineration and biochemical disposal.

In Wang's Liulitun area, nestled against mountains bordering the city, a cluster of small, run-down houses adjoins the rubbish tip. Nearby, dusty orchards and brick kilns belie the city's relentless economic progress. The rubbish tip itself is a huge covered site, one of the official city dumps. On a sunny, windy autumn day, it emitted no smell.

"You have to come in the evening, when they air out the site (to treat the waste)," said Wang, who would only give her surname. Ma Jing, a 17-year-old street vendor, concurred. "It's not all the time, but there is a smell, that's for sure. I'm not sure if it's good for your health," she said.

EDIT

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Beijing_grapples_with_growing_garbage_crisis_999.html

[valerief]

1. I wonder if some US companies are lobbying to get them to ship it here.

Wouldn't surprise me.

[Dead_Parrot]

2. The other 10% goes to walmart.

:evilgrin: