Seoul's Gangseo-gu district will distribute free dedicated plastic waste bags to promote proper waste sorting and boost recycling rates, district mayor Jin Kyo-hoon announced.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Climate and Environment Bureau, properly separating plastic waste that would otherwise end up in standard pay-per-bag garbage bags could reduce household waste by about 13.2 percent.
In response, the district launched the program to encourage residents to sort out the large volumes of plastic waste generated in daily life — including snack packaging, vinyl gloves and bubble wrap.
Gangseo-gu residents who want the dedicated bags can pick up three 20-liter bags per household each month, free of charge, at their local community center starting Monday. The total distribution for this round amounts to 60,000 bags.
The direct distribution through community centers supplements an existing arrangement in which three dedicated plastic waste bags are bundled with every pack of 10 standard pay-per-bag garbage bags of 30 liters or larger, improving access for residents.
Residents without the dedicated bags may also collect plastic waste in transparent or semi-transparent plastic bags that allow the contents to be seen. However, mixing other household waste or food scraps with the plastic waste may result in collection refusal or a fine.
The district's waste-sorting drive is already showing results. Since a pilot program was introduced in 2024, plastic waste collection has grown consistently — the volume sorted from January through July this year reached 2,484 tons, up about 18.6 percent from the same period last year.
At a senior staff meeting Wednesday, Jin urged officials to "actively promote and spread the word so that residents recycle plastic waste rather than throwing it in standard garbage bags, and make full use of the free dedicated bags being distributed."
Jin added that he expects the parallel distribution through community centers to make it easier for residents to participate in plastic waste sorting in their daily lives. "We ask all residents for their active attention and participation so that plastic waste that used to be thrown away can be recycled as a valuable resource," he said.
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