How Xiongan's underground plant pioneers new model of waste management

What comes to mind when you hear "waste treatment plant"? A place that's dirty, noisy and smelly?

In Xiongan New Area, about 100 kilometers south of Beijing, planners have taken a different approach. They've built a solid waste treatment plant entirely underground, with an ecological park above it.

Covering 33 hectares, the park features 70% green space. Even the chimney doubles as an observation tower. Thanks to negative pressure technology, odors are effectively contained. The facility also generates green electricity from waste, producing about 200 million kilowatt-hours annually, enough to power 200,000 households.

Unlike conventional facilities, the plant processes five types of solid waste in an integrated system designed to minimize waste and maximize resource recovery. Heat is reused, biogas is fed back into power generation, oil is converted into biodiesel, and residual materials are turned into road construction materials.

The project is part of Xiongan's broader effort to build a greener, more livable city, offering a new model for solid waste management and zero-waste urban development.