Online commenters in Singapore piled on after a video showed a woman arriving at a Beverage Container Return Scheme machine with five bulging garbage bags.
The responses were all over the map, with some commenters praising the woman, others scolding the cameraperson, and some wondering how it was even possible.
Here's what to know
SgfollowsAll (@sgfollowsall) posted the clip on Instagram showing the woman beside a stack of five large bags. Three of them reached up to her chin as she stood feeding the machine.
Under Singapore's Beverage Container Return Scheme, each returned drink container earns consumers S$0.10 (~8 cents USD), according to Mothership.
Commenters repeatedly focused on what might drive someone to bring that many containers at once.
"This is what people do to survive," a viewer wrote.
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One user praised the woman's efforts: "Good job citizen! Thank you for recycling."
Some of the backlash was aimed at the person who uploaded the video rather than the woman in it. One commenter called the poster "kaypoh," or nosy.
They asked: "And u take video of them for what? Kaypoh or three mins fame on social media?"
Other reactions were less sympathetic, as Mothership noted. A few viewers pointed to the "Balenciaga" print on the woman's T-shirt.
"Suddenly Balenciaga feels so cheap," a user quipped.
More background
Other commenters were astonished by the volume, with one asking how she had gathered so many containers and another wondering how long the return process would take.
One wondered: "Where did she get all those bottles ??? Dumpster diving and managing to collect this many is still crazy work."
The speed of the machines also became part of the discussion. One commenter said they had waited patiently behind a man who spent "10-12 minutes" processing only 24 cans and bottles.
Another user had a practical question for this scenario.
"I just want to throw 1 bottle how long I need to wait," they wondered.
That would remain unanswered, as was the matter of whether the machine could really fit all of the bottles the woman brought in one go. On the front, The Straits Times noted a BCRS machine can hold 1,000 or 2,000 containers, depending on its size.
What's being done?
Some residents are really using the machines to make ends meet. Mothership cited reports of one man spending two to three hours a day collecting bottles and cans to help offset living expenses.
Officials have also said that certain methods of collecting containers are illegal. After a man and a child were seen apparently searching through a trash bin for containers, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said the conduct was against the law, per the outlet.
Where can I learn more?
Similar programs elsewhere have changed how people handle recyclables.
• In Tasmania, residents returned over 1 million cans in four days for cash refunds.
• In Australia, a grocery-store policy puts money back in pockets as shoppers return bottles.
• In India, "Garbage Cafes" let customers pay in trash for meals.
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