REUSE OF TRASH: Workers at a household garbage treatment plant in Jinan, Shandong Province (XU SUHUI)

"In big cities such as Beijing, there is no way to continue the use of landfills as the main solution," said Wang Weicheng, Chairman of the Beijing Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Association. "Compared with dumping, burning waste saves 90 percent of land resources."

In September 2009, a plan was released that called for the construction of nine garbage-burning plants in Beijing. All the proposed plants will be built in suburban areas and form a circle around the capital.

Xu Haiyun, chief engineer of the China Urban Construction Design and Research Institute, said, "There are around 90 waste-to-energy plants in China and I think there will be at least another 80 to 90 in the next five years.".

For Xu, incineration is not just an unavoidable choice but a better choice.

"Landfills actually generate more greenhouse gas emissions than incineration plants. And since the garbage is buried in the land, it is more likely to contaminate underground water and the soil," Xu said.

He attributed the unpopularity of incineration in China in the past to high costs. The cost of treating 1 ton of garbage is 10-100 yuan ($1.46-14.64) in landfills, while the cost is well above 100 yuan ($14.64) when incinerators are used.

"But economic growth means China can afford incineration, which is definitely more environmentally friendly than landfills," Xu said.

Liu Yangsheng, a professor at the College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering of Peking University, was quoted by the People's Daily as saying that garbage incineration in China is safe because most of the country's plants use advanced technology that does not pose a threat to public health.

"Only 8 percent of garbage was incinerated before the end of 2009. And dioxin, the most toxic substance produced by burning garbage, is not a threat as long as it is kept within approved standards," Liu said.

According to directives issued by the State Council, pollutants discharged from the plants that treat household garbage will also be tested every three months and the dioxin discharged will be tested at least once a year. Dioxin is a dangerous chemical known as a kind of persistent organic pollutant with high toxicity. The results from those tests will be released to the public.

Industry analysts expect the market for the country's waste incineration sector to reach 240 billion yuan ($35.14 billion) during the next five years and waste management companies are likely to see a boom in business fueled by more government funding and incentive policies.

Environmentalists and many citizens, however, are opposed to incineration. They argue that hazardous emissions are an inevitable consequence once an incineration plant is put into use.

Zhao Zhangyuan, a retired researcher with the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, said that burning garbage produces many poisonous gases and will cause pollution.

"No matter how advanced the technology of garbage incineration, no one can guarantee dioxin-free emissions," Zhao said. "Doxin can accumulate in people's bodies and linger for a long time, increasing the chance of getting cancer. It can hardly be avoided once incineration is chosen as the way to cope with garbage."

Zhao cited the Likeng Waste Incineration Plant in Guangzhou as an example of the dangers of incineration. He claimed that 200 villagers living near the plant contracted cancer within four years of the plant opening.

"A lot of statistics show that people have a greater risk of contracting cancer when they live near a waste incineration plant," he said.

The national standard for a safe distance from a waste incineration plant is 300 meters. But the number of people who get cancer within 1,200 meters of an incineration plant is twice the number of people who contract cancer outside that circle, according to Zhao.

"Some experts argue that as long as garbage is burned at between 360 and 850 degrees Celsius, hazardous emissions, including dioxins, can be destroyed within seconds," he said. "But in practice, it is very difficult to control the burning temperature."

Because of opposition from environmentalists and local residents, a number of proposed waste incineration plants in China are on hold.

The Guangzhou Municipal Government had to postpone the construction of an incineration plant in Panyu District last year because of strong opposition from local residents. The overwhelming majority of residents in Panyu District signed a petition opposing the project on health concerns.