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Environmental information systems
Key messages: The generation of both hazardous and non-hazardous waste in the chemical industry increased by 21% between 2012 and 2018, with a drop between 2018 and 2020 most likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The amount of generated waste is marginally decoupling from the total gross value added by the chemical industry during this period, again most likely temporarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The share of total generated waste categorised as hazardous remained stable at about 50% (5.8 million tonnes per year) between 2012 and 2020.
Waste generation and gross value added (GVA) in the chemical industry in the EU-27*, 2012-2020
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Member States report hazardous and non-hazardous waste generation from industrial sectors as required by Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics.
The generation of total hazardous and non-hazardous waste in the chemical industry increased by 21% between 2012 and 2018. In 2020, waste generation fell by 11% compared to 2018, most likely temporarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This led to a slight decoupling of total waste generation from the gross value added (GVA) of the chemical industry. Overall, waste generation increased by 7% between 2012 and 2020. The share of generated wastes categorised as hazardous due to the presence of hazardous chemicals remained stable at about 50% between 2012 and 2020 with an average of 5.8 million tonnes per year.
Material efficiency is one of the principles underpinning the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework. This aims to reduce raw materials use in production processes and to generate less waste. With the transition of the chemical industry towards the production of SSbD chemicals, waste generation is expected to become less dependent on the value of goods produced by the chemical industry. Hence, total waste generation and GVA in the chemical industry are expected to decouple gradually, with a declining trend in waste generation and GVA continuing to rise.
Please consult the relevant indicators and signals below for a more comprehensive overview on the topic.
SSbD is a framework applicable to chemicals and materials, established by the European Commission in the recent Commission Recommendation (EU) 2022/2510. It aims to:
steer the innovation process towards a green and sustainable industrial transition;
substitute or minimise the production and use of substances of concern, in line with and beyond existing and upcoming regulatory obligations;
minimise the impact on health, climate and the environment during sourcing, production, use and end-of-life of chemicals, materials and products.
Total hazardous and non-hazardous waste data are retrieved from the Eurostat table ENV WASGEN and the NAC Rev. 2 activities 20 to 22 are selected to focus on data from the ‘manufacture of chemical, pharmaceutical, rubber and plastic products’.
Sub-categories of waste are selected according to the Guidance on classification of waste to cover production processes in the chemical industry, specifically:
spent solvents;
acid, alkaline or saline wastes;
used oils;
chemical wastes;
industrial effluent sludges;
rubber wastes;
plastic wastes.
Hazardous waste properties in terms of human health, environmental and physical hazards are compatible with that of hazardous chemicals.
Total GVA measures the value of chemicals, materials and products produced by the chemical industry.
GVA data are retrieved from the Eurostat table NAIO_10_CP16 (use table at purchasers’ prices) and the NAC Rev. 2 activities 20 to 22 are selected to focus on data from the ‘manufacture of chemical, pharmaceutical, rubber and plastic products’. GVA data are not available for some Member States across all years; this concerns 10 countries, namely Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Croatia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta and the Netherlands. Data from these 10 Member States were excluded from all years for the GVA. The share of the average GVA for these countries over the years where data are available amounts to 13%, ranging from 0.01% to 10%, with the exception of about 15% for Ireland for the manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations.
This indicator is one of the recommended indicators from the European Commission’s study on key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the industrial transition towards the production of safe and sustainable chemicals.
Relevant objectives under the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability
- Promote the development of safe and sustainable chemicals and materials, clean production processes and technologies
Eliminate as far as possible substances of concern from waste and secondary raw materials
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Other relevant indicators and signals
References and footnotes
- ↵EU, 2002, Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2002 on waste statistics (Text with EEA relevance) (OJ L 332, 9.12.2002, pp. 1-36).
- a bEU, 2014, Commission Regulation (EU) No 1357/2014 of 18 December 2014 replacing Annex III to Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on waste and repealing certain Directives Text with EEA relevance (OJ L 365, 19.12.2014, pp. 89-96).
- a bEU, 2022, Commission Recommendation (EU) 2022/2510 of 8 December 2022 establishing a European assessment framework for ‘safe and sustainable by design’ chemicals and materials (OJ L 325, 20.12.2022, pp. 179-205).