How do Japanese sort garbage?

Every place has its own rules

There are almost no Japanese littering anywhere. If you open the brand-name bags carried by Japanese girls, you will be surprised to find that in addition to cosmetics, there are shopping receipts, empty bottles and other garbage inside.

Text/@林平在日本

Almost anyone who has been to Japan will be deeply impressed by some of the small details of life. Policemen on bicycles? Waiters with smiling faces? Civil servants who are patient and dedicated and bow to you? Well-regulated traffic? Banknotes without creases? Water that you can drink by turning on the faucet? Fresh air? Clean toilets, rivers and streets .

Not only must garbage be strictly classified, but it must also be thrown away in the prescribed place within the prescribed time. If it is classified incorrectly, is not recycled, or if the time to throw it away is missed, then it will only take it home and stink for a few days before it can be thrown away next time. I'm still a little depressed about this. I always feel weird when I see the garbage at home. I want to throw it away immediately. Do you eat fish on Monday? Can you throw bones on Thursday? I feel like I’m almost turning into a ninja cat.

On weekdays, you hardly see Japanese people littering everywhere. They usually put the rubbish into bags and take them home for sorting and disposal. In Tokyo, you can barely find classified trash cans in convenience stores or stations. Are they clearly marked? Which type of garbage should be put into which trash can. In small cities, you can basically just take it home honestly, sort it carefully, put it at the door on the specified date, and buckle it tightly and wait for recycling. If you open the brand-name bags carried by Japanese girls, you will be surprised to find that in addition to cosmetics, there are shopping receipts, empty bottles and other garbage inside. Every dog ??walker has a must-have four-piece set? Paper, water, long clips, and plastic bags.

Japan implements a system of local autonomy? Each place has its own regulations. So every time I move, the real estate company and the landlord will give me a garbage classification list immediately. I usually post it in the most conspicuous place in the hall? When throwing away garbage, you must carefully sort it according to the above requirements. Some places are more relaxed? As long as they are divided into seven or eight categories. The outrageous places are divided into more than 20 categories. In the Nakano ward where I live now? Most of the garbage can be divided into combustible garbage? Throw it out before 8 a.m. on Mondays and Thursdays. Non-burnable garbage? Throw it out before 8 a.m. on Saturdays? Newspapers, magazines, books, cartons, bottles and cans Thursday morning at 8:30 Throw away before 8 a.m. on Tuesdays of the first and third weeks. Pottery, metal, and glass. I won’t introduce the small aspects. Plastic bottles alone are divided into three parts: bottle body, bottle cap, and plastic packaging. They must be washed before throwing away. Products such as gas tanks, thermometers, blood pressure monitors, broken glassware, etc. should be packaged and labeled. In addition, before throwing away large furniture, home appliances, etc., you need to call to make an appointment. You also have to spend money to go to a convenience store to buy special stickers and put them on. It is illegal to throw away at will.

Nakano Ward’s garbage classification list? There are three languages: Chinese, Japanese and Korean. When I first moved to Nakano Ward, I once counted the Tuesday of the second week as the first week. The landlord came to my house the next day with garbage and carefully explained to me the method and time of garbage sorting. It was super embarrassing. . There is almost no occupational discrimination in Japan. What will be looked down upon by neighbors is those who fail to sort garbage properly.

What impressed me most was that I once saw a little girl squatting on the ground crying on the road. There was a large dog next to her. After asking about it, I found out that it was a big dog that had diarrhea. The paper and water the girl brought with her were not enough to clean the floor. She was so anxious that she cried. I gave her a bottle of water and a packet of paper that I brought with me. The little girl kept bowing to thank me, but I felt it was strange. Later, I paid careful attention and noticed that every dog ??walker has a necessary four-piece set: paper, water, long clips, and plastic bags.

Walking a dog is called "dog walking" in Japanese. This word is very appropriate. Dogs do take a leisurely walk, and owners have to take care of their aftermath - take out the dog's poop. Pick it up and take it home? You also have to clean the ground.

Although I am still a little depressed, I have indeed developed the habit of not littering and disposing of garbage at any time. Every time I go back to China, my relatives and friends see me consciously putting the garbage away after eating. They all keep praising me for being a completely different person after going to Japan. I feel very happy. In fact, Japan only began to implement garbage classification in the 1970s. At first, it was simply divided into two categories, and then it was gradually subdivided and improved. Up to now, the awareness and methods of garbage classification have been fully integrated into the lives of Japanese people and become a part of life. Japanese people usually carry handkerchiefs with them, and there are more than one.

So? Why can the Japanese adapt and get used to garbage classification so quickly? I have discussed this with the Japanese many times.

First of all, it has to do with their education from childhood to adulthood. When they first enter kindergarten, their parents will teach them not to leave any food behind, bathe frequently every day, change clothes, take off shoes at the door, produce and sell their own garbage, and adopt sophisticated garbage classification methods, etc. I have developed the good habit of being clean and maintaining good hygiene since I was a child. Schools will teach them about the relationship between humans and the environment. Some schools even organize students to visit waste incineration plants to let them understand that different classifications will affect the waste incineration conversion rate and resource recycling rate. Japanese animation also spares no effort to promote environmental protection. For example, the one who destroys the environment is the big bad guy.

After opening the door of a Japanese home, there is a place called the entrance hall. Next to it is a shoe cabinet. One step higher is the inner floor leading to the living room. When Japanese people go home and visit other people’s homes, they have to take off their shoes at the entrance before entering. Many public places in Japan also require you to take off your shoes? Clinics, shopping malls, libraries, and even many restaurants require you to take off your shoes before entering. Several times on the tram, I saw mothers taking off the shoes of their children while they were sitting and then putting them on again when the children stood up, because they were afraid that the shoes would stain the car seat. Although Japan is very clean, shoes hardly ever get dirty.

Secondly? It’s related to Japan’s shame culture. "Confusion" means trouble in Japanese? It is a special Japanese culture not to cause "confusion" to people. Don't cause trouble to others is the motto of almost all Japanese people. It is a habit they have developed in various educations and environments since childhood. After the tsunami, a mother who cried silently without making a sound appeared on Japanese TV. Because "she only lost one child?" And there were many families who lost two or three children. If she cried uncontrollably, it would make other people lose their loved ones. The parents are even more grieved." You will often see signs prohibiting suicide at train stations in Japan. Please don’t cause “confusion” to everyone. Such anti-suicide slogans are a bit speechless, but they are indeed the best way to target Japanese people. Why don't you bring trouble to others, let alone littering? And if the garbage is not recycled because it is not sorted properly, and is despised by the neighbors, the Japanese will feel even more shameful.

Again? Environmental impact. I understand this very well. In Japan, everyone doesn’t litter. I always put the garbage in my bag and take it home and dispose of it carefully. I will subconsciously cover my mouth when I sneeze. But within a few days of returning to China, I started to drink facial tissues that cost one yuan a pack. I just wiped them and threw them away. There was no need to sort the garbage at all. It is true that northern oranges can be compared with southern oranges? So? I have always disagreed with the statement that the quality of Chinese people is lower than that of Japanese people.

Speaking of the environment? I have to mention a beautiful landscape in Japan? The handkerchief. In Japan? You almost never see anyone spitting. Japanese people usually carry handkerchiefs with them, and there are more than one. Use it to wipe sweat when the weather is hot? Can also be used to wipe nose or phlegm when you have a cold or cough? It is a must-have medicine for home and travel. Moreover, Japanese handkerchiefs are very beautifully made and sell very well. They are one of the most popular gifts. "A girl is silent and crying while covering her mouth with a handkerchief." Every time I see Japanese people using handkerchiefs, I will think of this poem. The scenes of ancient bustling streets and talented people and beautiful women seen in domestic costume dramas come to mind. Those who use facial tissues can basically be judged as foreigners who have just arrived in Japan.

Finally, inseparable from the Japanese government’s vigorous publicity and confidentiality, Japan’s flexible local autonomy system also makes policies and regulations easier to implement and enforce.

Japan has a small territory, a large population, and a serious shortage of resources. They believe that through garbage classification and recycling, huge value can be created in environmental protection and resource recycling. Is this approach of killing two birds with one stone worth learning?