More than 40 pct city waste recycled or composted in Europe

The share of municipal recycled or composted waste in the European Union (EU) has steadily increased to 43 percent from 18 percent in nearly 20 years, Eurostat said on Thursday.

The statistical office of the EU said in a report that in 2013 the amount of municipal waste generated per person in the EU amounted to 481 kg, down by 8.7 percent compared with its peak of 527 kg per person in 2002.

Since 2007, the generation of municipal waste per person has constantly decreased in the EU to below its mid-1990s level.

The figure also shows that 31 percent of the waste ended up in the landfill and 26 percent was incinerated.

Waste management treatment methods differ substantially among EU member states.

Recycling and composting together accounted for nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of waste management treatment in Germany and for more than half in Slovenia (61 percent), Austria (59 percent) and Belgium (55 percent) in 2013.

The amount of municipal waste generated also varies significantly across the EU member states. With less than 300 kg per person, Romania, Estonia and Poland had the lowest amount of waste generated in 2013.

Denmark, with 747 kg of waste per person, had the highest amount of waste generated in the same year. Endit