The trash problem in China (30 images)

A Chinese trash collector loads a truck full of cardboard next to his recycling depot in Beijing on September 18, 2012. UPI/Stephen Shaver

A Chinese trash collector sleeps on a discarded couch next to his recycling depot in Beijing on September 18, 2012. UPI/Stephen Shaver

[L] A Chinese migrant worker hauls trash to a recycling depot in Beijing on August 23, 2012. [R] A Chinese man catches a ride on top of a load of recyclable trash being peddled to a trash depot on the outskirts of Beijing on August 2, 2011. After surpassing the United States as the world's largest producer of household garbage, China has embarked on a massive program to build incinerators as landfills run out of space. Yet these incinerators have become a growing source of toxic emissions that can damage the body's nervous system. UPI/Stephen Shaver

[L] A Chinese migrant worker hauls trash to a recycling depot in Beijing on August 23, 2012. [R] A Chinese man catches a ride on top of a load of recyclable trash being peddled to a trash depot on the outskirts of Beijing on August 2, 2011. After surpassing the United States as the world's largest producer of household garbage, China has embarked on a massive program to build incinerators as landfills run out of space. Yet these incinerators have become a growing source of toxic emissions that can damage the body's nervous system. UPI/Stephen Shaver

[L] A Chinese migrant worker hauls trash to a recycling depot in Beijing on August 23, 2012. [R] A Chinese man catches a ride on top of a load of recyclable trash being peddled to a trash depot on the outskirts of Beijing on August 2, 2011. After surpassing the United States as the world's largest producer of household garbage, China has embarked on a massive program to build incinerators as landfills run out of space. Yet these incinerators have become a growing source of toxic emissions that can damage the body's nervous system. UPI/Stephen Shaver

A Chinese trash collector sleeps in the back of his truck in Beijing on June 20, 2012. China produces nearly a third of the world's trash, a burden that the government is attempting to solve by burning some of it for energy. UPI/Stephen Shaver