Qingzhen strives to build a waste-free city

Qingzhen city in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, has made progress in establishing itself as a "waste-free" city since it launched the campaign in early 2022, local media report.

Zero waste in cities calls for reducing trash production at the source, cutting landfills and increasing recycling. The long-term goal is to minimize solid waste production, while maximizing the use of trash-recycled resources and safe disposal.

In order to build a waste-free city, Qingzhen established the Guiyang Red Mud Comprehensive Utilization Research Institute by introducing professionals from universities and research institutes such as Guizhou University, Guizhou Institute of Technology, and Guiyang Aluminum and Magnesium Design and Research Institute.

Through this governmental, industrial, academic, and research platform, the city actively tackles problems related to the harmless treatment and large-scale utilization of bauxite residues, or red mud, and promotes the comprehensive utilization of red mud in Guizhou.

At present, two pilot study programs on the comprehensive utilization of red mud in Qingzhen have been completed, providing technical support for further development of the comprehensive utilization of this natural resource.

The city has also made full use of the bulk industrial solid waste in the New Building Materials Industrial Park of Qingzhen Economic Development Zone, and is exploring the creation of a "waste free" park while striving to build a circular-economy industrial system.

Qingzhen Economic Development Zone can dispose of and comprehensively utilize 4 million metric tons of industrial solid waste such as fly ash, yellow phosphorus slag and phosphogypsum, and has the capacity to dispose of 100,000 tons of hazardous waste.