Germany: Habits become second nature

Xie Fei

Germany is one of the countries with a relatively complete waste classification and recycling system in Europe. As the concept of waste classification has become popular, the rigorous and meticulous Germans have long been accustomed to waste classification, and the relevant regulations have been well observed and implemented.

In Germany, garbage is mainly divided into the following categories: household garbage, biological garbage, recyclable garbage, glass, waste paper, etc. Such classification can ensure that different types of garbage are properly handled. For example, biological garbage only includes food residues (including cooked and uncooked), expired food (removing packaging), fruits, vegetables, egg shells, flowers, other plants, etc., which will be directly used to generate biogas; for example, waste glass is also subdivided into colored glass and colorless glass, which is also for the convenience of recycling and reuse to make new glass products.

In general, the main purpose of garbage classification in Germany is to effectively improve the efficiency of garbage recycling and reuse through garbage classification, reduce the workload of garbage disposal methods such as burning and landfilling, so as to achieve the purpose of protecting the environment and saving resources. In Germany, most residential buildings have special indoor or outdoor garbage rooms for placing various types of garbage bins. Among them, there are black (black lid, non-recyclable household garbage), black (brown lid, kitchen waste and biological waste), blue (waste paper), green (waste glass), orange (recyclable garbage), etc. In many garbage rooms, there are relatively vivid garbage classification instructions posted to guide residents to correctly classify garbage.

At present, garbage classification in Germany mainly relies on residents' self-consciousness, and in principle there are no penalties for poor implementation of garbage classification. However, the property management company of the residential building and the relevant environmental departments responsible for recycling garbage will supervise and guide residents' garbage classification. In the apartment building where the author lives, there was a situation where someone put a large paper packaging box that had not been folded and disassembled on the ground of the garbage room. The property manager posted a notice with a photo at the door of the garbage room, urging the owner to dispose of the garbage as soon as possible according to regulations, otherwise the sanitation department has the right to refuse to accept the garbage in this building. Since refusing to accept garbage will affect the normal life of other residents in this building, the person concerned was "under great pressure" and soon disposed of the garbage as required.

Germany has a unique way of dealing with recyclable plastic bottles. Most beverages, mineral water and other products with plastic bottle packaging bought from supermarkets already include a "plastic bottle deposit" of 0.25 euros. After use, put the plastic bottle with the recyclable logo into the recycling machine, and you will get a voucher with the amount, which can be used as a voucher to continue consumption in the supermarket or apply for a refund at the cashier. This seemingly insignificant practice has popularized the recycling and reuse of plastic bottles and effectively increased the recycling rate of hazardous waste.

Singapore: Start from the source

Cai Honda

Singapore's garbage classification system is not complicated, and is mainly divided into two categories: recyclable garbage and non-recyclable garbage. Generally, blue trash cans are used for recyclable garbage, and green trash cans are used for non-recyclable garbage. The blue trash cans subdivide recyclable garbage into 4 categories and paste eye-catching labels on them: blue represents plastic products, green represents paper products, red represents glass products, and yellow represents metal products. Large recyclable items need to be handled separately.

Usually, after residents put recyclable garbage into the bin, licensed collection companies will collect and process it to achieve the recycling of waste resources. However, the implementation of garbage classification is not strict. Generally speaking, garbage cans seen on the streets of Singapore can be thrown into them without classification.

While advocating the classification of garbage, the Singapore government focuses on reducing the source of garbage generation, such as reducing excessive packaging, in order not to increase the corresponding burden on residents due to excessive garbage classification, and works hard on harmless treatment and recycling of garbage. According to statistics, Singapore has a population of more than 5.6 million, and each person produces nearly 1 kilogram of garbage every day, and nearly 60% of this garbage is recycled. Among them, non-recyclable garbage will be sent to the garbage incineration plant for incineration. After incineration, the volume of garbage will generally be reduced by 90%, and then it will be landfilled harmlessly; the remaining recyclable garbage will be transported to the garbage treatment plant for sorting by special machines and some manual work, and the plastics, glass, metals, etc. will be separated for sale or secondary processing. The remaining part will be processed to make bricks or used for paving.

Singapore aims to become a "zero-waste country". In terms of reducing waste, the government is committed to reducing packaging waste, which accounts for about one-third of the total amount of domestic waste, while calling on residents to live a green and environmentally friendly life. The Singapore government, industrial enterprises and non-governmental organizations jointly initiated and signed the "Voluntary Packaging Agreement" in 2007. According to the agreement, companies that sign the agreement, including product manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, etc., must voluntarily formulate standards for reducing the amount of packaging. According to calculations, since the signing of the first agreement, tens of thousands of tons of packaging domestic waste have been reduced, and the government has saved hundreds of millions of Singapore dollars in expenditure.

In order to maintain the image of a "garden city", the Singapore government has adopted a two-pronged approach of education and severe punishment for littering. Once someone violates Singapore's Environmental Public Health Act, they will be fined. Littering will be subject to a high fine. For those who litter seriously and "garbage bugs" (those who refuse to change after repeated education), in addition to being fined, they will also receive a labor reform order and be forced to wear a bright "pink and yellow vest" to clean public places and receive "labor reform".

Bulgaria: Start from the baby

Tian Xiaojun

In Bulgaria, those who do not follow the principle of garbage classification will be fined directly. For example, throwing recyclable garbage into a mixed household garbage bin is usually fined 10 levs to 50 levs (1 euro is about 1.95 levs); for those who cause more serious consequences, the fine is 150 levs to 500 levs; for those who refuse to change after repeated education, the fine is twice the maximum fine for serious consequences.

However, fines are only an auxiliary means of garbage classification. Letting the public have a strict and conscious awareness of garbage classification is the key to solving the problem. In order to cultivate residents' habit of garbage classification, Bulgaria starts from babies and cultivates children's environmental awareness from an early age.

Last year, a modern garbage treatment center in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, was put into operation. It has a children's interactive education center specially built to cultivate children's awareness of garbage classification. The 300-square-meter interactive education center is divided into three areas. The first area is the movie screening area, which is mainly used to promote knowledge about environmental protection and classification of packaging waste. Visitors can even learn about the history of organized waste collection systems from ancient times to the present; the second area is to cultivate children's environmental awareness, mainly for children to learn how to distinguish and put plastics, paper, glass and metal into recycling bins of different colors; the third area is the Green Earth theme area, where each visitor can leave their own ideas and suggestions on protecting the environment and the green world.

According to information provided by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science, in 2018, nearly 23,000 students participated in interest activities related to environmental education and healthy lifestyles. Sofia Mayor Vandkova said that children are ambassadors for the city to implement green policies, and children should understand from an early age that waste packaging can also become valuable resources.

Hungary: Extraordinary Delicacy

Zhai Chaohui

In Budapest, the capital of Hungary, garbage classification was only implemented in 2013, but over the years, garbage classification has become a habit for residents. When I first arrived in Budapest to work, my landlord told me that I must learn how to sort garbage carefully, because if I throw the wrong garbage, my neighbors will despise me and think I have low quality.

Green boxes are for household garbage, blue boxes are for paper garbage, and yellow boxes are for plastic and household metal waste. Hungarian garbage is roughly divided into several categories. The specific operation is not as simple as it seems.

For example, pizza boxes soaked in oil must be torn apart and thrown away. The oily part is classified as household garbage, and the rest is paper garbage; the plastic bottle cap of the paper milk carton should be unscrewed and placed in the plastic garbage, and the milk carton should be rinsed with water before being put into the paper garbage.

After living in Hungary for a long time, I gradually developed a sophisticated habit of sorting garbage. Mineral water bottles and beer cans should be flattened; shampoo bottles should be rinsed with water; books and newspapers cannot be tied with plastic tape, but paper ropes; expired medicines should be sent to pharmacies for recycling and disposal; foam boards, CDs, and videotapes are not plastic waste and should be handled separately; light tubes, bulbs, batteries, etc. should be handed over to special garbage collection stations, etc.

There is another type of garbage that needs to be handled specifically - garden waste. In autumn and winter, tree crushers driving on the streets collect large branches or even tree trunks that have been trimmed or broken by the wind and crush them into fragments of only a few centimeters in size. The author curiously asked the community property management and learned that Hungary has very strict standards for the treatment of garden waste. Grass, branches and leaves cut in the courtyard or community must be purchased in biodegradable collection bags, and the garden waste must be placed in designated locations and wait for the garbage collection truck to take it away. If the garden waste is placed in the ordinary garbage classification box, the garbage collection truck will decisively "refuse service" and may also be punished. After the garden waste is transported back, it will be composted, so the length of the branches in the collection bag cannot exceed 1 meter and the diameter cannot exceed 10 cm. Pine nuts and nuts cannot be placed in it because they have high resin content and are toxic, which will complicate the composting process.

However, there is such a day every year when you can "wantonly" throw away garbage at will. That is, garbage carnival day. In various cities in Hungary, there is a weekend every year when you can throw away garbage without sorting. In Budapest, each district has a different time for throwing garbage, which is to facilitate the garbage recycling company to have enough manpower to remove the garbage from the streets. On this day, every household will throw away the garbage that they don't know how to sort or the large and small sundries that are inconvenient to take to the garbage collection station on the street, including large furniture, discarded cathode ray tube TVs, etc. Housewives will also take advantage of the weekend to do a good cleaning.

Vietnam: Taking the First Step

Zhao Qing

Halong Bay in northern Vietnam attracts many tourists from China and abroad with its unique scenery of "Guilin on the Sea", but the increasingly serious garbage pollution in recent years has made this famous landscape less attractive. According to statistics, an average of about 7 tons of garbage is salvaged from Halong Bay every day, most of which are plastic garbage discarded by residents and tourists. According to statistics recently disclosed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Vietnam produces about 1.8 million tons of plastic garbage every year.

Recently, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc officially called for the city's stores, supermarkets, and markets to not use disposable plastic products by 2021, and China to not use disposable plastic products by 2025.

In large supermarkets such as BigC, some vegetables such as green onions and okra have begun to be packaged in banana leaves instead of plastic bags, and some rattan and bamboo products are used to hold goods. These substitutes for plastic bags and plastic boxes are inexhaustible in Vietnam. They are both environmentally friendly and economical to use, and can also form a unique local landscape. In some restaurants and coffee shops, paper straws have replaced disposable plastic tubes, and some bakeries have also replaced plastic bags with paper bags.

It takes time for people to change their mindsets and develop living habits. It will take a long time to truly say "no" to disposable plastic waste. Vietnam has taken the first step.

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