【Learn Chinese】How to Sort your Waste in China

If you live in or visit a big city like Shanghai or Beijing, you will see four colored trash bins everywhere. Sorting waste is serious in China. Learning these words will help you be a responsible citizen. Let's break it down.

The Four Categories
1. 可回收物 (Kě huíshōu wù) – Recyclable
Bin color: Blue
These are items that can be reused. Common examples:
塑料瓶 (sùliào píng) – plastic bottle
报纸 (bàozhǐ) – newspaper
玻璃瓶 (bōli píng) – glass bottle
易拉罐 (yìlāguàn) – tin can

Sentence: 塑料瓶是可回收物。(Sùliào píng shì kě huíshōu wù.) – Plastic bottles are recyclable.

2. 有害垃圾 (Yǒuhài lājī) – Hazardous Waste
Bin color: Red
These are dangerous items that need special treatment.
电池 (diànchí) – battery
过期药品 (guòqī yàopǐn) – expired medicine
废灯管 (fèi dēngguǎn) – used light bulb

Sentence: 电池是有害垃圾。(Diànchí shì yǒuhài lājī.) – Batteries are hazardous waste.

3. 湿垃圾 (Shī lājī) – Wet Waste (Kitchen Waste)
Bin color: Brown/Green
This means food waste that can break down naturally.
剩菜剩饭 (shèngcài shèngfàn) – leftover food
果皮 (guǒpí) – fruit peel
茶叶渣 (cháyè zhā) – tea leaves

Sentence: 苹果皮是湿垃圾。(Píngguǒ pí shì shī lājī.) – Apple peels are wet waste.

4. 干垃圾 (Gān lājī) – Dry Waste (Residual Waste)
Bin color: Gray/Black
Everything that doesn't fit into the other three bins.
纸巾 (zhǐjīn) – tissue paper
一次性筷子 (yīcìxìng kuàizi) – disposable chopsticks
脏衣服 (zāng yīfu) – dirty clothes

Sentence: 纸巾是干垃圾。(Zhǐjīn shì gān lājī.) – Tissues are dry waste.

Quick Memory Trick:
可回收 (blue) – Think: bottles and paper
有害 (red) – Think: dangerous (batteries, medicine)
湿垃圾 (brown) – Think: food that rots
干垃圾 (gray) – Think: everything else