A view of Tazhou, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: tzfb001]

Taizhou in East China's Zhejiang province was recently included in the "waste-free" city program launched by the Ministry of Economy and Environment during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, local media reported.

A "waste-free" city is an advanced urban management concept aimed at minimizing the production of solid waste, as well as improving the recycling and safe disposal of waste in the city.

In recent years, Taizhou has made strides in treating plastic waste.

In 2021, three companies from Taizhou were listed as Zhejiang "waste-free" enterprises.

This year, the city aims to become a provincial "waste-free" city and further raise awareness of plastic pollution among the public.

According to a guideline unveiled by the local government in November 2020, Taizhou aims to significantly reduce consumption of disposable plastic products in fields which produce large amounts of plastic pollution as well as in fields such as e-commerce, express delivery and food delivery. The government will also promote alternative products this year.

A management system for the production, circulation, consumption, recycling and disposal of plastic products will be established by the end of 2023, and the development and application of alternative products will be further improved.

By the end of 2025, a pluralistic co-governance system integrating urban and rural areas will have taken shape, and plastic pollution will be effectively controlled.

Zhejiang has vowed that all prefecture-level cities as well as half of all the counties and county-level cities in the province will become "waste-free cities" by the end of 2023.