Municipal waste recycled in Italy
Italy: Municipal waste recycled was 14.66 million tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
14.66 million tonnes
Change on year
down 4.0%
World rank
4th
of 90 countries
All-time high
15.44 million tonnes
in 2019
All-time low
4.12 million tonnes
in 2000
Years of data
24
2000–2023
Municipal waste recycled in Italy, 2000–2023
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for municipal waste recycled in Italy is 14.66 million tonnes, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.0% on the previous year and up 25.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal waste recycled in Italy peaked at 15.44 million tonnes in 2019 and was at its lowest, 4.12 million tonnes, in 2000.
That places Italy 4th out of 90 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Municipal waste recycled in Italy, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 4.12 million tonnes | — |
| 2001 | 5.24 million tonnes | +27.0% |
| 2002 | 4.42 million tonnes | -15.6% |
| 2003 | 4.90 million tonnes | +10.9% |
| 2004 | 5.47 million tonnes | +11.5% |
| 2005 | 5.87 million tonnes | +7.3% |
| 2006 | 6.25 million tonnes | +6.4% |
| 2007 | 8.13 million tonnes | +30.2% |
| 2008 | 7.74 million tonnes | -4.9% |
| 2009 | 9.53 million tonnes | +23.2% |
| 2010 | 10.05 million tonnes | +5.4% |
| 2011 | 11.13 million tonnes | +10.7% |
| 2012 | 11.52 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 2013 | 11.65 million tonnes | +1.2% |
| 2014 | 12.34 million tonnes | +5.9% |
| 2015 | 13.07 million tonnes | +5.9% |
| 2016 | 13.81 million tonnes | +5.7% |
| 2017 | 14.12 million tonnes | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 15.01 million tonnes | +6.3% |
| 2019 | 15.44 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 14.87 million tonnes | -3.6% |
| 2021 | 15.17 million tonnes | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 15.28 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 14.66 million tonnes | -4.0% |
Italy compared with similar countries
- Italy's 14.66 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 948,000 tonnes, 15.5× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Italy's 14.66 million tonnes is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.06 million tonnes, 13.8× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6.17 million tonnes | 4.12 million tonnes | 9.53 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.81 million tonnes | 10.05 million tonnes | 15.44 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.00 million tonnes | 14.66 million tonnes | 15.28 million tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Italy
- 1 South Africa 1.33 billion tonnes compare
- 2 United States 62.68 million tonnes compare
- 3 Germany 35.04 million tonnes compare
- 5 France 14.51 million tonnes compare
- 6 South Korea 13.17 million tonnes compare
- 7 Spain 9.32 million tonnes compare
More environment data for Italy
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.04 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.47 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.324 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.18 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.94 % 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 -0.2257 % 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 Italy?
- Municipal waste recycled in Italy was 14.66 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 Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 15.44 million tonnes in 2019.
- What is the lowest municipal waste recycled recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.12 million tonnes in 2000.
- How does Italy rank for municipal waste recycled?
- Italy ranks 4th out of 90 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal waste recycled rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Italy 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 — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Municipal waste recycled (Tonnes).