“NoTimetoWaste:China’sHiddenRuralWasteCrisis,”afeaturedstoryfromourIssue“AlpineAmbitions,”hasbeennamedasafinalistintheSocietyofPublishersinAsiaAwardsinthe“ExcellenceinReportingonEnvironmentalIssues”category.Wearerepublishingthisstoryinlightofthisannouncement—congratulationstoallfinalists!
Aslandfillsoverflow,China’svillagesstrugglewiththeimpactofthecountry’strashproblem农村垃圾分类进行时
TextandphotographybyTinaXu
Thewake-upcallcamewiththetragedyofanewbornboy.In,four-month-oldXieYongkangwaslivingmetersawayfromtheHai’anWasteIncinerationPlantinJiangsuprovincewhenhiseyesbegantonolongerfollowmovement;doctorsdiagnosedbabyXiewithcerebralpalsyandepilepsy.Withnogeneticcause,expertsblamedtheincinerationplant.Butthehazardsofmismanagedtrashhadbeensignaledlongbefore:SixvillagershaddiedofcancerinneighboringXieheVillagethepreviousyear;fivemorecaseswerediagnosedin.Soon,farmersbegandraggingdeadlivestocktotheincinerator’sgates,demanding
