Gimhae City Offers Free Collection of Plastic Barriers Used for COVID-19 Prevention

Recycling Processing After Collection of Over 4 Tons

Gimhae City in Gyeongnam Province will begin free collection of plastic partitions used for COVID-19 prevention starting June 1.

The city announced on the 31st that partitions currently disposed of sporadically and in small quantities are difficult to classify by material and are being categorized as waste at recycling sorting centers, leading to incineration or landfill.

Plastic partitions for COVID-19 quarantine. [Photo by Gimhae City Hall, Gyeongnam]

With the surge in plastic use since COVID-19, the city plans to implement a "Free Collection and Recycling of Plastic Partitions" program in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environment Corporation to increase added value through recycling plastics that would otherwise be incinerated or landfilled, reduce waste generation, prevent environmental pollution, and realize a carbon-neutral society.

Plastic partitions collected in quantities of 4 tons or more will be transported by the Korea Environment Corporation to recycling companies for processing.

Recycling Collection Days by Eup, Myeon, and Dong in Gimhae City. [Data provided by Gimhae City Hall, Gyeongnam]

According to the city, residents disposing of household waste who have plastic partitions stored at restaurants, cafes, and other locations should remove foreign substances such as protective films and adhesives as much as possible, separate the partitions and stands, and dispose of them on the designated recycling collection days for each eup, myeon, and dong.

They can bundle up to 25 kg per disposal, with a maximum of 50 kg allowed at one time. Schools and business waste generators must handle disposal separately through waste disposal contractors.

The city's Resource Circulation Division Chief said, "Instead of simply burning or burying the protective equipment that has safeguarded our health over the past three years, we aim to recycle these resources." He added, "This will bring various social and economic benefits such as reduced disposal costs, substitution for imported acrylic resin, and reduction of CO2 emissions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.