Trash collection is problem for Curitiba. First, the city has only one landfill. Second, its garbage trucks do not fit on some of the streets in the city's low- income (低收入) neighborhoods. Curitiba knew the solution lay in getting everyone involved (参加) .
In 1989, the city started a recycling program called Garbage That Is Not Garbage. The city set up a central recycling center for sorting (把…分类) recyclable materials, food-based and waste. Colorful cartoon characters were symbols of different kinds of recyclable materials, which could help children get to know the importance of recycling. Collection bins were the same colors as the cartoons, reinforcing (加强) the message. People made money by picking up the trash at these bins and taking it to the center for processing. Today, Curitiba claims to have the highest recycling rate of any city in the world.
Câmbio Verde, the Green Exchange program, and Compra do Lixo, the Buying of Garbage program, are successful recycling programs in Curitiba. They get low-income- residents (居民) to join in the city's recycling program by having them transport trash from neighborhoods that are hard for garbage trucks to reach.
Depending on what they deliver, people exchange their trash for cash, food and services. Their way of life is improved, and the city is better able to manage its trash. These programs are one way Curitiba has gotten creative as a green city. It shows how involving everyone can make green living possible.
| Trading in on Trash | ||
| Paragraph | Main idea | Supporting details |
| One | for Curitiba's trash collection problem | ★There is only one landfill in Curitiba. ★ cannot reach every corner of the city. |
| Two | Actions and influences of Garbage That Is Not Garbage | ★A central recycling center by the government. ★Kids understood the importance of recycling better. ★Curitiba's' recycling rate is pretty high. |
| Three | Cmbio Verde's and Compra do Lixo's ways of involving low-income residents | ★They make low-income residents from their neighborhoods to certain places. |
| Four | Results of recycling programs and conclusion | ★People's way of life is improved. ★Curitiba can manage its trash better ★Everyone in making green living possible. |
