China's existing garbage disposal technology and equipment must be upgraded in order to keep abreast of economic and social development, Chinese environmentalist Dong Baoshu has cautioned.

China still lags behind developed countries in controlling pollution caused by solid waste, though some new technology has been put into use, said Dong, secretary-general of the Solid Waste Disposal and Utilization Committee under the China Environmental Protection Association.

Chinese cities discharged 135 million tons of household refuse last year and the amount is increasing at an annual rate of 4.8 percent. However, only one fifth of household refuse was disposed of.

In addition, 10 million tons of urban garbage cannot be shipped to the dumping ground as a result of few workers, and nearly 40 percent of the garbage vehicles need to be replaced.

The problem has aroused great concern of the Chinese government. The State Economic and Trade Commission has worked out a plan for developing environmental protection as part of China's Tenth Five-Year Plan from 2001-2005.

Some enterprises have developed new technology to deal with solid waste. China's first power plant using garbage for raw materials went into operation early this year in Tianjin, a port city in north China. Plants creating fertilizer from garbage have been built in Wuxi, Hangzhou, Shanghai and other cities.

(Xinhua News Agency September 3, 2002)