(Photo: Yunnan.cn)

China Customs officers of Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan Province, announced Tuesday that seven imported garbage smuggling rings have been disbanded, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Kunming Customs recently completed the third round of the “Blue Sky 2018” investigation, which oversees anti-smuggling enforcement in Xishuangbanna and Kunming.

Law enforcement officers arrested 17 suspects and seized some 534 tons of solid waste in their recent raids. Two suspects, with the surnames Zhu and Tian, have been identified as the leaders of the smuggling rings and were also taken into custody.

According to the police investigation, Zhu and Tian bought solid waste from Myanmar and smuggled it into Kunming city. The solid waste was used to make plastic products, which were then sold to markets across the country. The pair have smuggled more than 5,000 tons of imported plastic waste into the city since the beginning of this year.

Kunming Customs has stopped 39 smuggling waste cases and seized more than 542 tons of imported waste such as used clothing, plastic, and scrap metal during the first four months of 2018.

Zhan Li, director of the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of Kunming Customs, said the agency will crack down on the smuggling of imported garbage to maintain a healthy and safe environment for the people.