Beijing park authorities are to encourage residents to adopt benches and trash cans to help pay for park maintenance.

Those who pay for one of these facilities will have their name engraved on the object, said an official from the city's park administration bureau Monday.

The Municipal Bureau of Landscape and Forestry recently launched a pilot project which allows citizens and agencies to participate in the maintenance of parks. It allows people or organizations to donate or "adopt" park facilities, Zhang Yahong, director of the scenic zone department from the bureau told the Global Times.

"Parks are part of the city's social welfare which benefit everyone. By launching this program we hope more citizens can be attracted by and participate in the administration and management of parks and hence promote citizens' sense of responsibility," said Zhang.

Zhang said eight parks are involved in the pilot, and people can contact the parks to donate or adopt facilities.

"All the expenses will be listed and it is open to the public for supervision," said Zhang.

Statistics from the bureau show Beijing now has 334 parks and 86.5 percent of them are free to the public, which means they have no ticket income as a way to pay for park maintenance.

The price of the equipment is determined by the style of different parks.

An employee surnamed Li from Honglingjin Park in Houbalizhuang, Chaoyang district, said that it costs 2,500 yuan ($404) to donate a bench.

"The bench is made with iron and resin, which meets the general style of our park. People can contact us and if they agree to donate a bench we can sign a contract and later we will coordinate with the supplier to order one," said Li.

In the Ming City Wall Park in Chongwenmen, Dongcheng district, an anonymous park employee said people need to pay 3,000 yuan to donate a bench, and to donate a trash can they need to pay 2,800 yuan.

"Our benches are made with stone and wood so it's more expensive," she said.

Residents broadly think the project is good, although some doubt whether anyone would love to have their name commemorated on a trash can.

Wang Qing, a 28-year-old retailer, said he would love to donate a bench to commemorate a loved one if he had spare money. 

"I often see similar things on foreign TV and films that people would donate benches, but I think most Chinese won't have their names engraved on trash cans," he said.

Commemorating a loved one in a spot they liked to visit by sponsoring a park bench is common in many countries, although having a plaque on a trash can would be unusual.

To donate a bench in Westminster in London costs 85 to 750 pounds ($130 to 1,150) for 10 years, and in Austin, Texas the price is $2,400, according to the websites of both cities.