A group of Beijing citizens including three government officials, one expert, two reporters, and a citizen representative, will leave for Japan and Macao on Monday to learn waste incineration techniques.

Officials from Beijing Municipal Government, the organizer, said the activity aims to help public learn about waste incineration and to clear public doubts about the technique.

"Many worry about garbage incineration, fearing that it is a health risk and a cause of pollution. So we want them to go out and see what other people do about their garbage disposal," an official said.

The group will not only visit local waste incineration plants, but also nearby residential areas, to gauge how health and safety is managed for those living close to the incinerators.

The citizen representative, a lawyer who declined to be named, was a firm opponent of garbage incineration. He has been engaged in a campaign against the building of a waste incineration plant near his home in Changping District in northwest Beijing since 2009.

"The reason we invited reporters and a citizen representative to go on this trip was that we want to better communicate with all citizens about the problem," he said.

Beijing has a population of 16 million and almost 18,400 tonnes of household garbage are created every day.

So far, landfill has taken 90 percent of the garbage disposal. Beijing plans to increase the waste incineration percentage from five percent to 20 percent by 2012, as a way to solve a land shortage problem.

"Pollution is the major concern for the public. The concern can be eliminated once people know about waste incineration plants overseas. They will realize there is no serious problem when incineration plant standards are followed," Wang Weiping, Beijing Municipal Administration Commission's vice chief engineer, said.

(Xinhua News Agency February 22, 2010)