Beijing Pushes Out Recyclers During Olympics
by Trey Granger
Published on July 15th, 2008
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In August, the Olympic games will be coming to Beijing, China. One thing that will be leaving is almost 170,000 workers who collect recyclables throughout the city.
Reuters reports that these workers represent one quarter of Beijing’s recycling efforts, collecting everything from cardboard to plastic bottles. Beijing officials say that the workers represent infectious diseases and criminal records. In order to present the image of a modern sanitized city, Beijing doesn’t want these workers to be present during the Olympics.
Beijing has not presented any plans yet for how recycling will be handled during the Olympics. The city has focused much of its efforts around cleaning up air pollution.
Looking to recycle in your area? Use Earth 911 to find out where recyclables are accepted near you.
