Total waste generation

In 2020, the total waste volume in Switzerland amounted to approximately 87 Mt. The largest share, around 82 %, came from construction and civil engineering. Excavation and demolition materials accounted for nearly two thirds of all waste, with one fifth originating from the demolition of buildings, roads and railway tracks. Around 7% of all waste was municipal waste, which includes waste from . Between 2000 and 2024, the annual amount of municipal waste increased from 4.7 Mt to 6 Mt, representing a rise in per capita waste from 659kg to . In the past few years, the waste generation per capita has stagnated. Nevertheless, Switzerland still has one of the highest waste generation rates worldwide, relative to its population.

Of the remaining waste, 6.6% was of biogenic origin, 2.1% was hazardous waste and 1.8% was iron and steel scrap [1]. The amount of incinerated and , and the share of separately collected and . Since 2005, more than half of municipal waste has been returned to the economy as secondary raw materials. The current recycling rate for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) beverage bottles, paper, .