(Yicai Global) June 29 -- Fragmented coverage, the small size of businesses and a dearth of standards are hindering the development of China’s recycling sector, the president of the National Resources Recycling Association said yesterday.

China’s recycling sites are mainly in the cities, but there are problems such as inadequate coverage, a lack of sorting and processing equipment and difficulties with transportation and storage, Xu Junxiang said at the association’s 30th anniversary yesterday. In the rural areas there are few recycling sites, resulting in the inefficient salvaging of resources.

More than 80 percent of the companies engaged in recycling are small and medium-sized firms, Xu said. They put little emphasis on research and development, have a chaotic disposal system and enter into serious competition with each other. There is also low added value of recycled products. This seriously restricts the development of the industry.

Lack of standards, different tax policies between regions, and the inability of firms to obtain tax rebates all hinder the development of sustainable recycling, he added.

Low-value renewable resources such as glass, plastic film and wood account for about 30 percent of all waste, but because of the low profits and high cost of recycling, there is little enthusiasm for recycling, said Gao Yanli, vice president of the China Materials Recycling Association.

There are about 90,000 businesses and 13 million people engaged in the recycling sector in China, according to a report released on the same day. Last year, more than 371 million tons of ten types of scrap, including scrap steel, waste plastics, waste paper and waste textiles, were recycled, more than double the amount in 2012, with a value of over CNY1.3 trillion (USD180.7 billion).

Editor: Kim Taylor