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Environmental information systems
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The indicator shows the share of material recovered and fed back into the economy – and thus saving extraction of primary raw materials – in overall material use.
The Italian circularity rate grew by some 15 percentage points between 2004 and 2023, and by 9 percentage points between 2010 and 2023.
The rate includes big differences between material categories, notably between fossil fuels and metal ores. The average reuse rates for these two material categories for 2010–2023 range from about 5% to 50%, respectively. The average reuse rates for 2010–2023 for the other two material categories are about 16% for biomass and about 20% for non-metallic minerals.
Two factors explain the circular material use rates for fossil fuels and metal ores.
- To increase the rate of circularity of fossil energy resources, it is necessary to switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources.
- The circularity rate overlooks the large indirect material flows triggered by the Italian demand for metal ores. Therefore, should the indicator include a life-cycle perspective, the circularity rate for metal ores would account for some 20% on average in 2010–2023.
To achieve future goals, Italy has issued Decree-Law No 84/2024, which aims to reduce dependence on imports of critical raw materials, promoting the recycling and reuse of materials already present in the national territory.
References and footnotes
- ↵ISPRA, ‘Tasso di uso circolare dei materiali’, ISPRA website, 31 December 2023, accessed 18 June 2025, https://indicatoriambientali.isprambiente.it/it/economia-e-ambiente/tasso-di-uso-circolare-dei-materiali.
- ↵ISPRA, L’Italia e l’ambiente – Stato, prospettive e scenari, Rome, 2023, https://www.isprambiente.gov.it/files2023/pubblicazioni/pubblicazioni-di-pregio/italia-e-ambiente.pdf.