In Beijing, it is not uncommon to see people sorting through outdoor trash bins and small landfills removing the recyclable items (typically plastic bottles and cardboard). They then sell these items to a recycling company to make money. However, if residents are already sorting trash, then there is no need for this kind of worker, and they lose their jobs. There are about 160,000 people making money this way in Beijing.
Ultimately, personal trash sorting will hopefully make people more aware of the trash they toss in a single day and encourage them to reduce plastic use. In addition, personal sorting will save a lot of water. When recyclables have been sitting a landfill with trash, they get very dirty, so more water is needed to clean them at the recycling plant than would be needed for an individual to quickly rinse it with tap water before sorting it themselves. Further, by the time the trash sorters remove the recyclables from the trash, the recyclables may be in too bad of a condition to be recycled. It is anticipated that more recyclables will actually be recycled if they are sorted out from the start.
The best thing to do as an individual is to try to reduce your use of single-use plastics and materials in the first place. One of the easiest ways to do this is to use a reusable water bottle and grocery bags. I usually grab dinner on the way home from work, so I keep these in my bookbag. I also started bringing my own Tupperware container so fill up with dumplings or noodles when I order take-out. I also always make sure to dispose of my trash correctly when I'm out.
