Volunteers promote garbage classification knowledge among residents in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/cnnb.com.cn]

Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang province plans to launch 1,500 intelligent garbage sorting machines across the city this year.

Residents will be required to dispose of their garbage in a classified manner after scanning their faces or swiping cards or codes to operate the machine.

The machines are able to automatically break the garbage bags and weigh the contents. They can also identify those who infringe on the regulations by using facial recognition and AI technologies.

This year, the local government aims to promote the garbage classification and intelligent recycling service system in more than 95 percent of its urban areas.

The demonstration residential communities for trash classification are expected to account for more than 60 percent of the city's total.

In 2020, Ningbo was rated as excellent in the garbage sorting promotion by the provincial government

It was also ranked among the top three out of 46 key cities which were included in the nation's pilot program for garbage classification.