Municipal waste recycled in Australia
Australia: Municipal waste recycled was 2.35 million tonnes in 2023. ▼ Falling
Municipal waste recycled in Australia, 2003–2023
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2023, municipal waste recycled in Australia stood at 2.35 million tonnes.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.7% on the previous year and down 44.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal waste recycled in Australia peaked at 4.31 million tonnes in 2012 and was at its lowest, 2.28 million tonnes, in 2021.
That places Australia 21st out of 90 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Municipal waste recycled in Australia, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 2.70 million tonnes | — |
| 2007 | 2.84 million tonnes | +5.0% |
| 2008 | 4.02 million tonnes | +41.8% |
| 2009 | 3.12 million tonnes | -22.3% |
| 2010 | 3.40 million tonnes | +8.8% |
| 2011 | 3.24 million tonnes | -4.7% |
| 2012 | 4.31 million tonnes | +33.1% |
| 2013 | 4.23 million tonnes | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 3.55 million tonnes | -16.2% |
| 2015 | 3.45 million tonnes | -2.9% |
| 2016 | 3.16 million tonnes | -8.2% |
| 2017 | 2.68 million tonnes | -15.3% |
| 2018 | 2.82 million tonnes | +5.1% |
| 2019 | 2.87 million tonnes | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 2.77 million tonnes | -3.4% |
| 2021 | 2.28 million tonnes | -17.7% |
| 2022 | 2.39 million tonnes | +5.0% |
| 2023 | 2.35 million tonnes | -1.7% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 2.35 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 948,000 tonnes, 2.5× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Australia's 2.35 million tonnes is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.09 million tonnes, 76% of the median. (10 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.17 million tonnes | 2.70 million tonnes | 4.02 million tonnes | 4 |
| 2010s | 3.37 million tonnes | 2.68 million tonnes | 4.31 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.45 million tonnes | 2.28 million tonnes | 2.77 million tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More environment data for Australia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.75 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.98 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.345 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.4 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.6708 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.0861 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is municipal waste recycled in Australia?
- Municipal waste recycled in Australia was 2.35 million tonnes in 2023, according to United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal waste recycled recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 4.31 million tonnes in 2012.
- What is the lowest municipal waste recycled recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.28 million tonnes in 2021.
- How does Australia rank for municipal waste recycled?
- Australia ranks 21st out of 90 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal waste recycled rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 44.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal waste recycled. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Municipal waste recycled (Tonnes).