Unbelievable: Look at the sad reality of China's urban waste

If the subject is China, what do you think? It's the biggest economy in the world, it's the biggest annual growth, it's the most populous country… But what if we talk about the problems there, what's on your mind? Perhaps the incredible pollution, with images of closed skies, gray, people with masks, industries and cars galore. Right?

It would be natural if that happened, as these are the main issues surrounding the country. About pollution, we have already published here a story that explains the terrible conditions of the environment in various Chinese cities. But today we are going to address another environmental problem of absurd and unbelievable proportions, mainly due to the apparent neglect with which it has been treated by the population and the authorities: the garbage dumped in the streets and urban public places.

As described in the beginning of an article presented by All That Is Interesting, in some places, "garbage covers the streets like a small layer of dirty snow." And the situation is quite that: they are piles and piles of rubbish thrown on the streets, scattered by the beach and rivers. The images don't lie and are scary at the very least.

China, as the largest nation, largest growing country and also the largest economy in the world, produces about 300 million tons of waste per year, mostly from large cities. Now, reader, you can imagine the situation, since much of it, instead of going to the right destinations, will end up in the streets and public places of urban centers, leaving many places covered with dirt and debris.

But how and why is the situation like this?

China has the fastest economic growth in the last 30 years. This also implies the development of large urban centers, as large cities remain the destination of rural residents seeking a new perspective on life.

Growth in the economy generates an increase in consumption, which in turn will lead to more waste. Both the lower and upper classes are looking for new experiences and looking for new, better, more modern and more expensive products. These changes lead to greater categorization of the population, and as people acquire status, the greater the lack of social responsibility and the neglect will become even more evident.

With this reality, the citizens' mindset is changing and another way of thinking is established. As Hong Kong cleaning agency CEO Lisa Christensen explained, they prefer to leave garbage on the streets for someone to collect later. It's kind of like thinking that throwing dirt in the right place will take the job of someone who might be cleaning it. This is what they think when they look at the situation of job seekers in large cities.

People do it without worry, walking on the street or by car, in squares or parks and even beaches, taking as a normal attitude. In addition, residents of large cities tend to dispose of waste in places where there is already spare waste, as if it were indicated that "if there is waste in such a place, it is because someone has already played and so others can play too." From another perspective, as if public places were big dumps. This behavior and mentality have been proven by field studies.

Just to clarify, a survey was conducted in Shanghai to gather data on China's expressway problem. It was then found that 68% of car drivers and 95% of truck drivers throw their trash out the window. In answering the survey, they stated that they do so for convenience, ie, it is a custom that does not generate the slightest embarrassment.

This attitude also gave rise to another issue: conflict between sanitation agency professionals and the middle-class or higher population. The revolt generated some serious confusion and the whole situation only worsened, as citizens began to discard even more waste on public roads.

The work of collecting professionals is daily and there are also recyclable waste pickers, who select the rubble in public places to exchange for money. Even so, there is no reduction in the volume of waste disposed of in these places. In short, the accumulated garbage is so great that even the allied work of these groups can not clean the streets of these cities.

Measures taken to improve

Currently in Hong Kong, there is a fine for those who dispose of trash in public places. The value, in local currency converted to US dollars, is approximately US $ 200. Unfortunately, this is not enough to inhibit the attitude of the “rude” Chinese, and without a reinforcement in awareness campaigns, the measure does not achieve significant results.

With the country's rapid economic growth and the entrance of capitalism at uncontrolled levels, the authorities' focus is not on environmental issues, and the situation is worrying environmental activists. Thus, in an initiative of the nature protection agency and the online magazine Ecozine, an interesting awareness campaign was carried out.

On Planet Earth Day, April 22, 2015, posters were scattered with images of alleged “garbage disposal criminals”. The great differential of the action was the use of information from genetic materials collected from the waste thrown on the streets. With this material, and with the help of an advanced program, the campaigners read the DNA of the old owners of that trash and made the faces of the posters with approximate characteristics, such as eye color, hair and skin, gender. and features of the face without the hair.

The goal was to give a real "wanted posters" tone, but without the true confirmation of the portrayed face. Because the publications were displayed at nearby places where the garbage had been collected, many people would stop by to find out if the picture on the board was their own. The campaign lasted only seven days and was held in some locations, especially subway stations.

Even though it has not caused major developments and it has not been throughout the country's territorial extension, the initiative shows that there is a way out of the problem, but that there must be much commitment and dedication by the authorities to awareness campaigns. Meanwhile, the Chinese continue to discard their waste in public places in the country.

What do you think should have more effect in order to stop the Chinese population from throwing garbage on the streets? Have your say on the Curious Mega Forum

Below are more images depicting the garbage situation in China: