Amidst the rumble of machines, decaying rubbish has been compressed
with the aid of new technical processes to create a new form of
environmentally friendly concrete. The "concrete" was then paved
for constructing the Huqingping Expressway. Journalists saw an
image of the rotten turned into the miraculous, on the "Trash
Concrete Foundation Expressway" construction site on Monday. Even
though the test section of the expressway is only 100 meters,
Shanghai is still managing to break through the ring of "garbage
walls" surrounding the city.
Statistic shows that the city generates 14,000 tons of refuse every
day. About 10 percent of rubbish which can't be buried in
authorized landfills just piles up on vacant rural tracts due to
poor waste disposal facilities. There are 220 garbage depositaries
around the city, and 9 hills of rubbish which continue to pile up
to areas greater than 10 mu (1.67 acres). As a result
Shanghai is becoming a city surrounded by garbage.
The "trash concrete" project is an innovative trial aimed at
finding out how to resolve the dilemma of "garbage hills."
Officials from Hong Kong Aton (Holdings) Ltd., the projects
technical supporters, told journalists that the technology being
used is now patented in China.
Using advanced environmentally friendly technology not only
resolves the garbage problem, but also saves resources and reduces
the cost associated with the project.
(China.org.cn, translated by Wu Nanlan, November 13, 2002)