Total waste generation in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Total waste generation was 859,984 tonnes in 2022. ▲ Rising
Total waste generation in Bulgaria, 2004–2022
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Bulgaria recorded 859,984 tonnes for total waste generation in 2022.
The figure is down 3.7% on the previous year and down 4.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total waste generation in Bulgaria peaked at 903,119 tonnes in 2012 and was at its lowest, 308,760 tonnes, in 2018.
Bulgaria ranks 17th of 62 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Total waste generation in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 722,228 tonnes | — |
| 2006 | 632,966 tonnes | -12.4% |
| 2008 | 754,286 tonnes | +19.2% |
| 2010 | 618,107 tonnes | -18.1% |
| 2012 | 903,119 tonnes | +46.1% |
| 2014 | 835,401 tonnes | -7.5% |
| 2016 | 617,689 tonnes | -26.1% |
| 2018 | 308,760 tonnes | -50.0% |
| 2020 | 892,764 tonnes | +189.1% |
| 2022 | 859,984 tonnes | -3.7% |
Bulgaria compared with similar countries
- Bulgaria's 859,984 tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 293,977 tonnes, 2.9× the median. (39 countries reporting)
- Bulgaria's 859,984 tonnes is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 289,947 tonnes, 3.0× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 703,160 tonnes | 632,966 tonnes | 754,286 tonnes | 3 |
| 2010s | 656,615 tonnes | 308,760 tonnes | 903,119 tonnes | 5 |
| 2020s | 876,374 tonnes | 859,984 tonnes | 892,764 tonnes | 2 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More environment data for Bulgaria
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -1.39 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -1.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.573 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.18 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -6.02 % 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 -0.7509 % 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 total waste generation in Bulgaria?
- Total waste generation in Bulgaria was 859,984 tonnes in 2022, according to United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total waste generation recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 903,119 tonnes in 2012.
- What is the lowest total waste generation recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 308,760 tonnes in 2018.
- How does Bulgaria rank for total waste generation?
- Bulgaria ranks 17th out of 62 countries with data for 2022.
- Is total waste generation rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bulgaria 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 Total waste generation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total waste generation, by activity (Tonnes).