by Xinhua writers Ye Ting, Zhao Jiale

CHONGQING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- For Australian Will Glasgow, the green and efficient approach to waste management followed by southwest China's Chongqing Municipality offers him valuable insights, which have sparked his interest in further exploring China's experience in building "zero-waste cities."

As a journalist with The Australian, Glasgow joined a group visit to Chongqing from May 19 to 21 to learn more about the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. During the tour, he visited Chongqing Sanfeng Baiguoyuan Environmental Energy Co., Ltd., where he secured a better understanding of how household waste is minimized, recycled and safely treated, while ultimately being converted into electricity.

Unlike the typical image of a traditional waste-to-energy plant, this waste treatment plant boasts a clean, fresh environment featuring lush greenery. The processing line at the plant includes giant robotic arms, aided by artificial intelligence, which methodically feed household waste into incinerators, ensuring an even and automated input process.

"Our waste-to-energy plant eliminates harmful substances in household waste through high-temperature incineration, while also generating electricity from the heat produced to supply power for daily residential use," said Liu Changfeng, general manager of the company.

As of March 2025, the plant had processed a cumulative total of 9.98 million tonnes of waste, generated 4.24 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, and reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 3.5 million tonnes, according to Liu, who added that all household waste in Chongqing's central urban areas is incinerated -- with zero landfill required.

The waste-to-energy plant serves as a microcosm of Chongqing's broader efforts to build a higher-quality, city-wide "zero-waste city." Zheng Yanghua, deputy director of the Chongqing municipal bureau of ecology and environment, explained that a "zero-waste city" aims to cut down on waste from the very beginning, make better use of resources through recycling, and minimize the amount of waste sent to landfills.

"'Zero-waste' doesn't imply the complete elimination of solid waste," Zheng explained. "Instead, it focuses on minimizing waste generation at the source and enhancing recycling and reuse efficiency."

In addition to household waste recycling, Chongqing is making steady progress in extending "zero-waste" practices to its industrial and agricultural sectors.

The city is actively promoting the comprehensive utilization of industrial solid waste, building recycling systems for emerging waste types, such as used power batteries, discarded photovoltaic panels and wind turbine blades, and encouraging the efficient reuse of agricultural waste.

At the battery reuse production line of Chongqing Beisiyuan New Energy Co., Ltd., used power batteries go through a series of steps including health testing, disassembly and re-manufacturing. Processed batteries are reassembled into standardized battery packs, which are then put back to use in low-speed electric vehicles, energy storage systems, telecom base stations, and smart streetlights.

"Even after retirement, new energy vehicle (NEV) batteries still have plenty of usable capacity and can be reused following testing and reassembly," said Zhang Hongwang, chairman of Chongqing Beisiyuan New Energy Co., Ltd.

As early batches of NEV batteries reach the end of their life, he added, the company is speeding up its efforts in terms of battery recycling and reuse to meet growing demand in this emerging market.

In agriculture, plastic film is an essential material that helps increase soil temperature, retain moisture, conserve water during drought and boost crop yields. However, while improving production, it also creates the problem of white pollution.

In recent years, Qijiang District in Chongqing has gradually established an integrated system for collecting and processing agricultural plastic film, turning waste into valuable resources while reducing agricultural non-point source pollution.

"The collected plastic film is reprocessed into plastic pellets, which are then used to make products such as water pipes, cone-shaped buckets and stools, widely applied in agriculture, industry and other fields," said Yang Debing, head of Chongqing Qijiang Supply and Marketing Group Heminxin Renewable Resources Co., Ltd.

So far, the company has recycled over 6,600 tonnes of used agricultural film and plastic packaging -- and sold nearly 3,800 tonnes of plastic pellets.

Chongqing plans to become a national leader in "zero-waste city" construction by 2027, aiming for a comprehensive utilization rate of more than 75 percent for major industrial solid waste, zero landfill and full incineration of primary household waste -- and a steady reduction in landfill disposal of hazardous waste.