Think You Can Recycle According to China's New Waste Regulations? We'd Like to See You Try

As of Jul 1, Shanghai residents are now required to sort their trash according to new recycling regulations rolled out throughout the city. The news, which has caused a flurry of confusion on the ground and online demonstrates how the transition from a one-bin-takes-all versus four-bin system has not been a smooth one.

The four categories in question are: 'wet,' 'dry,' 'hazardous,' and 'recyclable,' which may sound easy enough but citizens have been struggling to adapt, flummoxed by items that don't appear to fit any of the designated options. It hasn't helped that the instructions provided are rather confusing.

On top of all that, many citizens have complained about the invasion of privacy this new system requires, with volunteers frequently "checking" each household's trash to ensure that it has been correctly sorted, while others have also complained that they are unable to drop off their trash within the designated collection times, as reported by Sixth Tone. Those found to flaunt the system can be fined between RMB 50-200.

China first proposed a trash sorting system in 2000 to handle mounting garbage challenges, identifying Shanghai, Beijing, and six others as pilot cities, and aims to have implemented a nationwide urban household trash sorting system by 2025. More than 2,300 public institutions in Beijing were already signed up to the program last year, including schools, hospitals, supermarkets, and tourist attractions.

While the new recycling regulations have so far only launched in Shanghai, it's only a matter of time before they come to the capital, with some housing complexes already trialing the scheme.

In an attempt to help people get to grips with the categories, the Shanghai Landscaping and City Appearance Administrative Bureau even launched an interactive quiz on QQ. We took the quiz twice and the one thing that we definitely learned was that we need more practice; on the first attempt we only scored 5/10, and 8/10 the second time around.

We were also surprised to learn that paper cups do not belong in the 'recyclable' bin because they are coated with a thin layer of plastic that is not biodegradable, designating them as a 'dry' item instead.

If you think what you have what it takes to be a master recycler, we've translated 15 objects from the quiz below – see if you can guess in which bin they belong from the categories below:

• Wet: Perishable daily garbage.
• Recyclable: Items suitable for recycling and resource utilization.
• Hazardous: Waste that poses a direct or potential hazard to human health or the natural environment.
• Dry: All waste that doesn't fall into any of the aforementioned three categories.

Fail miserably? No need to worry! You can while away the hours with the new "Garbage Classification" app (垃圾分类 lājī fēnlèi) dedicated to helping people sort their trash. Simply take a photo of the item or search by name and the app will tell you in which category it belongs.

READ: 8 Easy Ways to Reduce Your Waste Footprint

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Email: kuang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: China Stringer Network