Garbage-sorting standards at top plazas and hotel found lacking
The No. 1 Shopping Center, Shimao International Plaza and Le Royal Meridien Shanghai in downtown Huangpu District were ordered to rectify irregularities in waste sorting yesterday.
Urban management and law enforcement authorities conducted the unannounced inspection on Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall.
The companies had failed to sort domestic waste, as well as to set up domestic garbage classification containers, the Shanghai Urban Management and Law Enforcement Bureau said.
“The swoop inspection targeting shopping malls and hotels found problems such as missing classification signs on garbage bins, mixed dumping of dry and wet waste, failure in setting up garbage bins for different types of waste and poor management of garbage rooms,” said Qin Lie, an inspection official with the bureau.
At the No. 1 Shopping Center, officials found the garbage bins did not have any classification signs, and some did not have any covers.
At the Shimao International Plaza, the same problems were found.
Also, some garbage bags were dumped on the ground randomly. Vegetables, fruit peels and food residues were found in a bin supposed to be used for dry garbage, officials found.
Le Royal Meridien Shanghai failed to set up domestic garbage classification and collection containers. Dry, wet and recyclable garbage including paper, plastic bottles and food residues were mixed in the same bin, officials found.
Some bins were even locked. A worker at the hotel said they were used to handle inspections.
The property management company of the No. 1 Shopping Center, the plaza operator and the hotel have been ordered to fix problems before 10am today.
They have until Wednesday 10am to set up domestic garbage classification containers for different wastes.
Businesses that fail to rectify violations will face administrative punishment, said Qin.
Enterprises can be fined up to 500 yuan (US$75) for failure to have correct garbage-sorting and collection containers, and up to 1,000 yuan for failure to sort waste.
Fines set to increase
From July 1 when Shanghai’s first domestic garbage management regulations take effect, the fine will be raised to 5,000 yuan and 50,000 yuan.
Individuals will be fined up to 200 yuan for failure to sort garbage.
The city’s urban management and law enforcement authorities have found 2,903 irregularities in garbage sorting, with 178 administrative fines imposed since March 1 when a campaign was launched.
Urban management and law enforcement officials have carried out 5,800 inspections and 6,700 promotions of the new garbage-sorting regulations during the campaign.
Residential complexes, office buildings, shopping malls, hospitals, schools and government authorities are being targeted.
Officials are also inspecting government authorities, state-owned enterprises, parks, shopping malls, property management service providers, transport hubs and about 12,000 residential complexes citywide.
In addition they will inspect more than 230 domestic garbage collection and transport enterprises and more than 20 domestic garbage-handling companies.
Hazardous waste, industrial solid waste and construction waste cannot be mixed with domestic garbage.
Property management companies with irregularities will be listed in the city’s property management service company credibility management system. Garbage treatment companies with serious irregularities will have their licenses revoked, according to the bureau.