A volunteer shows a resident how to operate a smart garbage can in Huzhou, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: huzhoufabu]

Huzhou was recently ranked first among cities in Zhejiang in a provincial assessment of the promotion of household garbage sorting in 2022.

The evaluation was conducted by the Zhejiang Provincial Leading Group on Household Waste Classification.

This is the fourth year in a row Huzhou has topped the provincial assessment and the fifth consecutive year it is rated an "excellent city" in terms of garbage sorting in the province.

Meanwhile, its administrative areas – Anji county, Wuxing district and Deqing county – were classified as "excellent", while Nanxun district was given the "good" rating, the second highest rating in the assessment.

Last year, 77 residential communities from Huzhou were honored as provincial models for high-standard household garbage sorting. The city had seen a negative growth in the total amount of household garbage for the fourth year in a row.

Authorities have set a goal of turning another 195 communities into provincial models in this regard this year, as well as increasing the proportion of such communities in the city to more than 80 percent in 2025.