Develop Zero-Waste Cities for the Building of an Ecological …
375
3 Zero-Waste City Building Will Boost Circular Economy
and Contribute to Progress Towards an Ecological
Civilization
Building zero-waste cities is a major decision made by the CPC Central Committee
and the State Council in order to fight pollution and build a moderately prosperous
society in all respects. It will contribute to waste reduction at the source, waste recycling and environmentally sound disposal in cities, and improve urban waste management. It will also promote green production, green lifestyle and green consumption,
and contribute to the building of an ecological civilization.
(1) The campaign to build zero-waste cities is an innovative integration of various
relevant policies so as to form a system for coordinated development. There
used to be separate pilot projects for waste management initiated by different
authorities, such as the “Double Hundred” project for comprehensive use of
resources implemented by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), and the pilot project initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Affairs for comprehensive use of crop straw. More departments now
cooperate to align policies and seek coordinated development. The NDRC and
the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, for example, cooperated
in the development of industrial bases for comprehensive use of bulk solid
waste. Pilot zero-waste programs approach urban solid waste management
from the perspective of the overall development of cities, and aim to create a
new development pattern that coordinates between solid waste management
and urban transformation and development, facilitating industrial restructuring
and the development of emerging industries. These programs offered a platform for practice so that we can deepen the reform of systems for solid waste
management, remove long-standing barriers that resulted in fragmented administration and overlapping responsibilities of various relevant authorities, and
explore systems and technologies for comprehensive management of solid
waste suitable for China’s conditions.
(2) Building zero-waste cities helps resolve the solid waste problem in cities and
improve environmental quality. China is the largest producer of solid waste
in the world, with an annual output of approximately 10 billion tons and a
backlog of 60–70 billion tons. Among the over 600 large and medium-size
cities in China, two thirds face the challenge of excessive waste. A survey of
202 such cities shows that comprehensive utilization of industrial solid waste
cover 42.5% of the total amount of waste, and the rate for hazardous industrial
solid waste is 48.6%. To build zero-waste cities, measures need to be adopted
to address solid waste throughout its lifecycle, including production, consumption, management and disposal, to improve urban environmental quality in all
aspects.
(3) The building of zero-waste cities will foster new growth drivers in the solid
waste treatment industry. The efforts to build zero-waste cities will help shape
a large-scale solid waste treatment industry. During the 13th Five-Year Plan
375
3 Zero-Waste City Building Will Boost Circular Economy
and Contribute to Progress Towards an Ecological
Civilization
Building zero-waste cities is a major decision made by the CPC Central Committee
and the State Council in order to fight pollution and build a moderately prosperous
society in all respects. It will contribute to waste reduction at the source, waste recycling and environmentally sound disposal in cities, and improve urban waste management. It will also promote green production, green lifestyle and green consumption,
and contribute to the building of an ecological civilization.
(1) The campaign to build zero-waste cities is an innovative integration of various
relevant policies so as to form a system for coordinated development. There
used to be separate pilot projects for waste management initiated by different
authorities, such as the “Double Hundred” project for comprehensive use of
resources implemented by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), and the pilot project initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Affairs for comprehensive use of crop straw. More departments now
cooperate to align policies and seek coordinated development. The NDRC and
the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, for example, cooperated
in the development of industrial bases for comprehensive use of bulk solid
waste. Pilot zero-waste programs approach urban solid waste management
from the perspective of the overall development of cities, and aim to create a
new development pattern that coordinates between solid waste management
and urban transformation and development, facilitating industrial restructuring
and the development of emerging industries. These programs offered a platform for practice so that we can deepen the reform of systems for solid waste
management, remove long-standing barriers that resulted in fragmented administration and overlapping responsibilities of various relevant authorities, and
explore systems and technologies for comprehensive management of solid
waste suitable for China’s conditions.
(2) Building zero-waste cities helps resolve the solid waste problem in cities and
improve environmental quality. China is the largest producer of solid waste
in the world, with an annual output of approximately 10 billion tons and a
backlog of 60–70 billion tons. Among the over 600 large and medium-size
cities in China, two thirds face the challenge of excessive waste. A survey of
202 such cities shows that comprehensive utilization of industrial solid waste
cover 42.5% of the total amount of waste, and the rate for hazardous industrial
solid waste is 48.6%. To build zero-waste cities, measures need to be adopted
to address solid waste throughout its lifecycle, including production, consumption, management and disposal, to improve urban environmental quality in all
aspects.
(3) The building of zero-waste cities will foster new growth drivers in the solid
waste treatment industry. The efforts to build zero-waste cities will help shape
a large-scale solid waste treatment industry. During the 13th Five-Year Plan