An automated bottle recycling machine erected next to the Shanghai No. 1 Department Store on the pedestrian street of Nanjing Road E in Shanghai has become a huge hit with the passersby.

After just one week of operation, the machine, the first of its kind in China, has already processed more than 3,000 empty bottles, Shanghai Daily writes.

The machine accepts plastic or aluminum containers with bar codes and gives a 0.10 yuan reward to anyone who throws a container into it.

Cao, an office director with the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street Management Office, says he hopes the machine will help reduce the number of waste collectors roaming the street rummaging for bottles, and thus improve the city's image. It will also raise the public's awareness of environmental protection issues, he added.