Technology is also making recycling easier and more rewarding. In the Jingyunting residential complex, smart recycling bins allow residents to scan a code, deposit recyclable materials and receive payments based on their weight. The rewards can be exchanged for cash or everyday goods. In just over a year, more than 350 households have registered, earning over 2,800 yuan ($390) in total, while two smart bins have collected 13 tons of recyclables.

　　Across Xiong"an"s newly developed residential areas, waste-sorting facilities now cover all communities, and 100 percent of household waste receives safe treatment, according to the local government.

　　

　　Residents deposit recyclables into smart recycling bins in a residential community of Handan, North China"s Hebei Province, on July 29, 2026. Photo: VCG

　　Chinese answer to a universal urban question

　　This isn"t just happening in China.

　　From Copenhagen"s CopenHill, where a waste-to-energy plant doubles as a ski slope and hiking destination, to Singapore"s Tuas Nexus, designed to integrate solid waste and used water treatment while recovering energy and resources, cities around the world are experimenting with ways to make traditionally unpopular infrastructure cleaner, more efficient, and more closely connected to urban life.

　　Seen in that global context, Xiong"an"s underground plant offers a Chinese answer to a universal urban question: Can a city process what people throw away without sacrificing the environment in which they want to live?

　　Back on the surface, the answer feels tangible. The giant steel claws are still moving underground. Incinerators are still burning. Turbines are still generating electricity. But above them, there is grass, water and a walking path.