HAZMAT-suited workers poke plastic swabs down millions of throats in China each day, leaving bins bursting with medical waste that has become the environmental and economic levy of a zero-COVID strategy.
China is the last major economy wedded to stamping out infections no matter the cost.
Near-daily testing is the most commonly used weapon in an anti-virus arsenal that includes snap lockdowns and forced quarantines when just a few cases are detected.
From Beijing to Shanghai, Shenzhen to Tianjin, cities are now home to an archipelago of temporary testing kiosks, while authorities order hundreds of millions of people to get swabbed every two or three days.
Mass testing appears set to stay as Chinese authorities insist zero-COVID has allowed the world's most populous nation to avoid a public health catastrophe.
But experts say the approach -- a source of political legitimacy for the ruling Communist Party -- creates a sea of hazardous waste and a mounting economic burden for local governments who must plough tens of billions of dollars into funding the system.
"The sheer amount of medical waste that is being generated on a routine basis (is) at a scale that is practically unseen in human history," said Yifei Li, an environmental studies expert at New York University Shanghai.
"The problems are already becoming astronomical, and they will continue to grow even bigger," he told AFP.
Beijing has positioned itself as an environmental leader, cracking down on air and water pollution while setting the goal of making its economy carbon-neutral by 2060, a target experts say is untenable given the current trajectory of investments in coal.
Blanket-testing is now posing a new trash challenge.
Each positive case -- typically a few dozen a day nationwide -- unspools a trail of used test kits, face masks and personal protective gear.
If not disposed of properly, biomedical waste can contaminate soil and waterways, posing threats to the environment and human health.
- Burning questions -
Cities and provinces home to a total of around 600 million people have announced some form of routine testing in recent weeks, according to an AFP analysis of government notices and Chinese media reports.
Different regions have imposed different restrictions, and some areas have suspended the policy in step with falling cases.
Nationwide data on the waste footprint has not been disclosed. But Shanghai officials said last month the city produced 68,500 tonnes of medical waste during its recent COVID lockdown, with daily output up to six times higher than normal.
Under Chinese regulations, local authorities are tasked with separating, disinfecting, transporting and storing Covid waste before finally disposing of it -- usually by incineration.
But disposal systems in the poorer rural parts of the country have long been overburdened.
"I'm not sure that... the countryside really has the capacity to deal with a significant increase in the amount of medical waste," said Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations.
The spike in waste may prompt some local governments to process it improperly or simply "dump it on the ground" in temporary landfills, said Benjamin Steuer, of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
In a statement to AFP, China's health ministry said it had made "specific demands for medical waste management" as part of national COVID protocols.
- Waste of money? -
Beijing has urged provincial capitals and cities with at least 10 million people to set up a test site within 15 minutes' walk of every resident.
Top leaders also expect local governments to foot the bill for testing at a time when many are struggling to balance the books.
Expanding the model to the whole of the country could cost between 0.9 and 2.3 percent of China's gross domestic product, Nomura analysts said last month.
"The economics of that is tricky," said Li of NYU Shanghai. "You don't want to invest in permanent infrastructure to process what is perceived as a short-term surge of medical waste."
Jin Dong-yan, a professor at Hong Kong University's School of Biomedical Sciences, said "very ineffective and costly" routine testing would force governments to back away from other much-needed healthcare investments.
Authorities are also likely to miss positive cases as the Omicron variant spreads rapidly and is harder to detect than other strains, he told AFP.
"This will not work," he said. "It will just wash down millions of dollars into the sea."
ETX Studio
Thu Jun 23 2022
![China's mass testing mantra is building a waste mountain China's mass testing mantra is building a waste mountain](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2022-06/41655957057_BEIJING.jpg)
A worker carts a bin loaded with medical waste at the Youan Hospital in Beijing. - ETX Studio
Jenayah: Polis sahkan suspek teman lelaki Nur Farah Kartini
Lelaki yang ditahan polis bagi membantu siasatan berhubung penemuan mayat Nur Farah Kartini Abdullah, adalah teman lelakinya.
Suspek kes kematian Nur Farah Kartini direman tujuh hari
Seorang penjawat awam yang dikaitkan dengan penemuan mayat Nur Farah Kartini Abdullah, direman selama tujuh hari bagi membantu siasatan kes tersebut.
[TERKINI] Pan Gon bakal umum letak jawatan hari ini?
Tidak ada maklumat lanjut berkaitan sidang media berkenaan walaupun desas desus mengatakan ia melibatkan kepimpinan tertinggi FAM atau barisan kejurulatihan skuad Harimau Malaya?
Bukan masa sesuai untuk perkenalkan semula GST - Amir Hamzah
Menteri Kewangan II, Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan berkata bukan masa sesuai untuk perkenal semula GST. Katanya, kerajaan hanya akan perkenalkan cukai yang tidak memberi kesan kepada golongan rentan.
#AWANInews #SisiTVParlimen
#AWANInews #SisiTVParlimen
![Anda kini boleh uji iOS 18 Public Beta Anda kini boleh uji iOS 18 Public Beta](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/41721100842_iOSPublicBeta.jpg)
Anda kini boleh uji iOS 18 Public Beta
Walaupun iOS 18 Public Beta sedia dimuat turun, ia masih lagi dalam peringkat pembangunan dan ujian.
Saya 'pelik' soalan YB Hulu Terengganu - Timbalan Menteri KPDN
Timbalan Menteri KPDN, Fuziah Salleh pelik dengan soalan YB Hulu Terengganu, Datuk Rosol Wahid yang mengaitkan harga barang naik dan subsidi diesel antara faktor kekalahan PH di Sungai Bakap.
#SisiTVParlimen #AWANInews
#SisiTVParlimen #AWANInews
PKPS 2.0: LHDN kutip RM512.6 juta - Amir Hamzah
Menteri Kewangan II, Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan berkata LHDN sudah mengutip RM512.6 juta melalui Program Khas Pengakuan Sukarela (PKPS) 2.0 yang bermula 6 Jun 2023 hingga 31 Mei lalu.
#SisiTVParlimen #AWANInews
#SisiTVParlimen #AWANInews
![Bursa Malaysia meneruskan peningkatan pada awal dagangan Bursa Malaysia meneruskan peningkatan pada awal dagangan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-03/51709865166_BURSAMALAYSIA.jpg)
Bursa Malaysia meneruskan peningkatan pada awal dagangan
Pada 9.19 pagi, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) menambah 0.20 mata kepada 1,630.02 daripada 1,629.82 ketika ditutup pada Isnin.
![Kanak-kanak 4 tahun maut jatuh dari tingkat 16 Kanak-kanak 4 tahun maut jatuh dari tingkat 16](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2015-07/41437207555_PolisLogo.jpg)
Kanak-kanak 4 tahun maut jatuh dari tingkat 16
Polis Daerah Putrajaya menerima panggilan MERS 999 memaklumkan mengenai kejadian kanak-kanak jatuh bangunan sekitar pukul 7.50 pagi tadi.
AWANI Pagi: Hidup bersama COVID-19
Jom ketahui semua info penting tentang “Hidup Bersama COVID-19”! Langkah, pengurusan kes, vaksin, dan banyak lagi bersama Dr Aznida Mohamad Zaki, Pakar Perubatan Kesihatan Awam, Bahagian Kawalan Penyakit Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia dalam Awani Pagi Selasa, 8.30 pagi.
![India kekal negara paling ramai penduduk abad ini - PBB India kekal negara paling ramai penduduk abad ini - PBB](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81720771313_TBPonggal.jpg)
India kekal negara paling ramai penduduk abad ini - PBB
India dijangka kekal sebagai negara paling ramai penduduk di dunia dan berdepan tekanan ekonomi dan alam sekitar.
![Ukraine boleh bergantung kepada NATO untuk jangka panjang - Ketua NATO Ukraine boleh bergantung kepada NATO untuk jangka panjang - Ketua NATO](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/51720755170_JensStoltenberg.jpg)
Ukraine boleh bergantung kepada NATO untuk jangka panjang - Ketua NATO
Ketua NATO itu berkata, pihaknya bersetuju bahawa sokongan China dalam konflik ini akan memberi kesan kepada kepentingan dan reputasinya.
![Xiaohongshu dinilai US$17 bilion, platform sosial China paling pantas berkembang Xiaohongshu dinilai US$17 bilion, platform sosial China paling pantas berkembang](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/41720751219_Xiaohongshu.jpg)
Xiaohongshu dinilai US$17 bilion, platform sosial China paling pantas berkembang
Ia menawarkan bentuk paparan grid dan mengabungkan perkongsian gambar dan video.
![Malaysia catat 438 penerbangan mingguan dari China Malaysia catat 438 penerbangan mingguan dari China](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/51720528606_SulungQingdao.jpg)
Malaysia catat 438 penerbangan mingguan dari China
Jumlah penerbangan mingguan dari China ke Kuala Lumpur mencecah 438 penerbangan dan dijangka terus meningkat tahun ini, kata Ketua Pengarah Tourism Malaysia P. Manoharan.
![Xi Jinping seru SCO berwaspada terhadap ancaman berbaur Perang Dingin Xi Jinping seru SCO berwaspada terhadap ancaman berbaur Perang Dingin](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/71720178611_TBSeniorChineseL.jpg)
Xi Jinping seru SCO berwaspada terhadap ancaman berbaur Perang Dingin
Presiden China, Xi Jinping menyeru negara anggota Pertubuhan Kerjasama Shanghai (SCO) berwaspada terhadap ancaman yang berbaur Perang Dingin.
![China sokong usaha Kazakhstan untuk sertai BRICS China sokong usaha Kazakhstan untuk sertai BRICS](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/71720107136_OrganizationSCOs.jpg)
China sokong usaha Kazakhstan untuk sertai BRICS
Pengumuman dibuat dalam satu kenyataan bersama selepas pertemuan antara Presiden Xi Jinping dan Presiden Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
![OpenAI bakal tinggalkan China, syarikat AI lain mungkin menyusul OpenAI bakal tinggalkan China, syarikat AI lain mungkin menyusul](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-02/61707662600_OpenAI.jpg)
OpenAI bakal tinggalkan China, syarikat AI lain mungkin menyusul
OpenAI mengeluarkan kenyataan mengatakan bahawa mereka akan meninggalkan pasaran China pada 9 Julai ini.
![Aplikasi SuperApp untuk rujukan pemaju hartanah dan pembeli menjelang tahun depan - KPKT Aplikasi SuperApp untuk rujukan pemaju hartanah dan pembeli menjelang tahun depan - KPKT](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/41720051183_tbNgaKorMing.jpg)
Aplikasi SuperApp untuk rujukan pemaju hartanah dan pembeli menjelang tahun depan - KPKT
Aplikasi SuperApp menyediakan berbagai layanan dalam satu platform, dijangka dilancarkan tahun depan.
![China, Filipina setuju teruskan dialog mengenai Laut China Selatan China, Filipina setuju teruskan dialog mengenai Laut China Selatan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-03/61709632005_TBRESUPPLUBOAT.jpg)
China, Filipina setuju teruskan dialog mengenai Laut China Selatan
China dan Filipina mengadakan mesyuarat kesembilan berhubung Mekanisme Perundingan Dua Hala (BCM) di Laut China Selatan.
![BAJC: China lebur impian Malaysia ke pentas final BAJC: China lebur impian Malaysia ke pentas final](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81719868974_Beregulelakinegara.jpg)
BAJC: China lebur impian Malaysia ke pentas final
Impian skuad negara untuk pertama kali mara ke final Kejohanan Badminton Remaja Asia (BAJC) 2024 lebur apabila tewas 1-3 kepada China.