Share of plastic waste exports in Ireland
Ireland: Share of plastic waste exports was 2.2% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of plastic waste exports in Ireland, 1994–2024
Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of plastic waste exports in Ireland is 2.2%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.
Over the whole period, share of plastic waste exports in Ireland peaked at 2.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2013.
Ireland ranks 11th of 162 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of plastic waste exports in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 0.1% | — |
| 1995 | 0.0% | -75.4% |
| 1996 | 0.0% | +199.2% |
| 2001 | 0.0% | +21.9% |
| 2005 | 0.1% | +115.1% |
| 2007 | 0.2% | +104.0% |
| 2010 | 0.3% | +23.1% |
| 2011 | 0.3% | -2.5% |
| 2012 | 0.3% | -3.7% |
| 2013 | 0.0% | -100.0% |
| 2014 | 0.0% | — |
| 2015 | 0.0% | — |
| 2016 | 0.0% | — |
| 2017 | 0.0% | — |
| 2018 | 0.0% | — |
| 2019 | 0.0% | — |
| 2020 | 0.0% | — |
| 2021 | 1.0% | — |
| 2022 | 0.0% | -100.0% |
| 2023 | 0.0% | — |
| 2024 | 2.2% | — |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 2.2% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.1%, 15.5× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 2.2% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.2%, 9.2× the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 3 |
| 2000s | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 3 |
| 2010s | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6% | 0.0% | 2.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More environment data for Ireland
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.51 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.17 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.412 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.89 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.13 % 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 -0.0083 % 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 share of plastic waste exports in Ireland?
- Share of plastic waste exports in Ireland was 2.2% in 2024, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of plastic waste exports recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of plastic waste exports recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2013.
- How does Ireland rank for share of plastic waste exports?
- Ireland ranks 11th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of plastic waste exports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of global plastic waste exports that a country accounts for.