An official in eastern Beijing apologized to the public on Thursday for a bad-smelling garbage dump that's annoying nearby residents and promised to mitigate the odor in 20 days.

"On behalf of the government, I apologize to the residents living close to the garbage dump for the smell," Yin Xiufeng, head of the utility committee of the Beijing Chaoyang District, told a press briefing.

The Gao'antun Refuse Dump, a major facility in the eastern part of the capital, opened in 2002. It covers 40 hectares and handles 3,400 to 3,700 tons of garbage a day.

Volatile marsh gas and wet garbage contributed to the stench, Yin said.

The government will spray the refuse dump. It has installed equipment that will extract and burn the bad-smelling gas. The dump will also use waste-to-energy technology to generate electricity, he said.

As another part of the clean-up, the Chaoyang District Government will spend 91 million yuan (US$13.3 million) to cover the garbage with film. The district hopes to improve the air quality within 20 days.

Over the longer term, the government will increase green space to absorb the odors. All the garbage will be processed before they are dumped by 2012, said Yin.

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2008)