Municipal waste management across European countries

Note: The recycling rate is calculated as the percentage of municipal waste generated that is recycled and composted. Changes in reporting methodology mean that 2014 data are not fully comparable with 2004 data for Austria, Cyprus, Malta, Slovakia and Spain. 2005 data were used instead of 2004 data for Poland because of changes in methodology. On account of data availability, instead of 2004 data, 2003 data were used for Iceland, 2007 data for Croatia, and 2006 data for Serbia; and instead of 2014 data, 2013 data were used for Greece and Ireland, and 2012 data for Turkey. Data for Cyprus, Germany, Luxembourg, Poland and Spain are estimates.

The data suggest large differences in performance among countries (Figure 3.2):

• Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Sweden recycled at least half of their municipal waste in 2014.
• The highest increase in recycling rates between 2004 and 2014 was reported in Lithuania, Poland, Italy, the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic (increase of 20–29 percentage points).
• Overall, in 15 out of 32 countries, the increase in recycling rates was at least 10 percentage points over this period.
• However, in seven countries, the proportion of recycled municipal waste barely changed and in two countries it even decreased slightly.

Increasing recycling rates and declining rates of landfilling are clearly linked. Usually, landfilling declines much faster than the growth in recycling, as waste management strategies mostly move from landfill towards a combination of recycling and incineration, and in some cases also mechanical–biological treatment (EEA, 2013).

The rate of municipal waste landfilling for the 32 EEA member countries fell from 49 % in 2004 to 34 % in 2014. The performance of individual countries varied. In Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland, virtually no municipal waste is sent to landfill. On the other hand Cyprus, Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Malta and Turkey still landfill more than three quarters of their municipal waste.

Overall, the rates of landfilling decreased in 27 out of 32 countries. Between 2004 and 2014, the largest decreases occurred in Estonia (57 percentage points), Finland (41 percentage points), Slovenia (41 percentage points) and the United Kingdom (41 percentage points).

The amount of municipal waste landfilled and incinerated in 2014 ranged from 102 kg/person in Slovenia to 480 kg/person in Malta, with an average of 270 kg/person in Europe (32 European countries).

Overview of policy instruments

Countries use a variety of policy instruments for diverting waste from landfill and moving towards more recycling. Table 3.1 gives an overview of such instruments for the period from 2001 to 2015. More details and additional policy instruments and strategies can be found in the EEA’s country profiles on municipal waste management, the country profiles on resource efficiency, and the recent EEA report on waste prevention policies. The same policy instrument can be designed and implemented in many different ways, thereby influencing its effectiveness. Table 3.1 therefore lists the policies used, but also reflects how the instruments are implemented. For example, both the absolute landfill tax level in 2015 (or the latest available year) and the increase in landfill tax are used as criteria, as the latter shows a dynamic use of the instrument. While the list of instruments is not exhaustive, some messages emerge:

1. Countries using many of the instruments listed in the table have a higher municipal waste recycling rate than countries using few or no instruments. However, the way in which policy instruments are combined may be more relevant than the total number of instruments.
2. Most countries have developed more than two national waste management plans over the period but their recycling performance differs greatly. There is no systematic difference in performance between countries with national plans and countries with only regional plans.
3. Many countries use ‘pay-as-you-throw’ schemes (i.e. fees based on the weight or volume of the waste as an economic incentive for households to recycle their waste). Their level of implementation varies greatly by country and within countries. However, all countries with recycling rates above 45 % employ a similar system of sorts, while most countries with recycling rates below 20 % do not use them, indicating that pay-as-you-throw schemes are an effective instrument that drives recycling up.
4. All the countries that show landfill rates well below the EU-28 average of 28 % have either banned landfill of biodegradable or mixed municipal waste, or implemented a ban combined with a landfill tax of at least EUR 30/tonne.

Although not analysed here, other factors can be expected to contribute to high recycling rates, such as the level of wealth (there is a correlation factor of 0.65 between gross domestic product per person and the recycling rate), environmental awareness in the country, waste management tariffs and stringent implementation of waste management legislation. All countries with recycling rates below 30 % (with one exception) entered the EU in 2004 or later, indicating that these countries started to implement recycling policies later.

Table 3.1 Municipal solid waste (MSW) management and selected policy instruments in European countries, 2001–2015

Sources: Eurostat, 2016a; Environment Agency of Iceland, 2016 (recycling and landfill rates); ETC/WMGE, 2016.

Notes: (×) means that the instrument in the country is not mandatory or is implemented only in some regions or municipalities. On account of a lack of data: for Ireland and Greece2013 instead of 2014 data are used; for Turkey 2012 instead of 2014 data are used.

(See full table, online)