Waste and recycling

Europe is generating too much waste — and not enough is being recycled. The EU is working to create a more circular economy, among others, by preventing waste and improving waste management. At the same time, there are goals to reduce waste’s burden on health and the environment, and to keep valuable resources in the economy.

The EU generates massive amounts of waste from manufacturing, food, construction, electronics, textiles... And more is being generated each year.

In addition to losing valuable resources, waste can have significant negative impacts on human health and the environment. For example, incinerating waste can contribute to air pollution, landfills might contaminate water and land.

That is why the EU developed a waste policy that keeps products in use for as long as possible and sets strict standards for how to responsibly dispose of them when they can no longer be used. Policies and initiatives also focus on preventing waste generation in the first place by, for example, reducing food waste and making products easier to repair.

Many reuse and recycling initiatives can contribute to reducing the loss of resources in the EU:

Reuse centres and second-hand shops make old products available to new users.
Biowaste is turned into biogas and fertiliser.
Secondary materials are created from building waste.
Metals in electronic waste, such as from computers, gadgets and batteries are recovered and can be used in new devices.

Overall, the EU is slowly showing improvement toward recycling more and landfilling less. Still, achieving the EU’s waste objectives requires significant effort. Non-recyclable products need to be phased out, and waste should be collected separately so it can be recycled.

The way we manage our waste also needs to account for new waste streams. For example, as the number of electric vehicles grows in Europe, how will we recycle their batteries? Products need to be designed in a way to allow the recycling and reusing of their components.

Press releases and articles

Publications

Indicators

Maps and charts

Datahub

Country fact sheets

4.8 tones

of waste is produced each year per European citizen

49%

of municipal waste is recycled

Preventing unnecessary textile waste

Textiles is a fast-growing, environmentally impactful waste stream associated with unsustainable production and consumption. Clothing and other textiles are getting cheaper, meaning that people are buying more and using them for shorter periods.

Society can prevent textile waste through policies that ensure people buy fewer textiles, but a mentality and behavioural change is needed as well. Overall, the EU Textiles Strategy and other policies emphasise product design to promote durable and long-lasting materials. Preventing unnecessary textile waste is essential.

At the same time, support should be given to repair (e.g. through tax breaks) and reuse (e.g. through regulation). EU countries must also ensure that textiles waste is separated from other waste by 2025.

EU's waste exports

Although more than 90% of the waste generated in the EU is treated domestically, significant amounts are still exported to other countries. Iron and steel are the most prominent materials in waste imports into the EU as well as exports from it.

These shipments are almost exclusively composed of non-hazardous materials and are mostly exported for recycling. However, there have been indications that, in many instances, waste shipped for treatment outside the EU is not optimally managed. This potentially creates more pollution than if the waste were to be managed within the EU.

Our zero pollution report highlights some of the issues linked to waste exports.

How much of the municipal waste is recycled in your country?

See EEA indicator on recycling

Piero Quadrini, Environment & Me/EEA

Know your waste terms

Residual waste: waste that was neither recycled nor reused — that is waste material not collected separately for recycling or composting/digestion, and residues from sorting processes. Residual municipal waste is either incinerated or landfilled.

Recycling: any recovery operation in which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances.

Preparing for reuse: checking, cleaning or repair operations where products or their respective parts are prepared to be reused, without requiring any other pre-processing.

Waste prevention: actions taken before a substance, material or product has become waste that aims to reduce the quantity of waste, harmful substances associated with waste, and unfavourable impacts on the environment or human health.

Waste and recycling

Preventing unnecessary textile waste

EU's waste exports

How much of the municipal waste is recycled in your country?

Know your waste terms

More information

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