Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste in Australia

Australia: Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste was 102.12 Index in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
102.12 Index
Change on year
down 1.1%
World rank
25th
of 35 countries
All-time high
107.49 Index
in 2015
All-time low
75.76 Index
in 1980
Years of data
20
1980–2023

Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste in Australia, 1980–2023

02550751001980200120231980: 75.8 Index1992: 90.9 Index2000: 100 Index2007: 96.4 Index2008: 99.2 Index2009: 99.4 Index2010: 102 Index2011: 100.8 Index2012: 102.8 Index2013: 103.7 Index2014: 106.7 Index2015: 107.5 Index2016: 101.3 Index2017: 97.4 Index2018: 97.8 Index2019: 97.9 Index2020: 100 Index2021: 101.9 Index2022: 103.3 Index2023: 102.1 Index

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Index.

Analysis

The most recent figure for waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste in Australia is 102.12 Index, measured in 2023.

The figure is down 1.1% on the previous year and down 1.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste in Australia peaked at 107.49 Index in 2015 and was at its lowest, 75.76 Index, in 1980.

That places Australia 25th out of 35 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 75.76 Index 75.76 Index 75.76 Index 1
1990s 90.91 Index 90.91 Index 90.91 Index 1
2000s 98.75 Index 96.43 Index 100 Index 4
2010s 101.79 Index 97.37 Index 107.49 Index 10
2020s 101.83 Index 100.01 Index 103.26 Index 4

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 22 Portugal 117.97 Index compare
  2. 23 France 116.27 Index compare
  3. 24 OECD 111.33 Index compare
  4. 26 Brazil 100.59 Index compare
  5. 27 Italy 99.59 Index compare
  6. 28 Germany 99.36 Index compare

See the full ranking of 50 places →

More environment data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste in Australia?
Waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste in Australia was 102.12 Index in 2023, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 107.49 Index in 2015.
What is the lowest waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 75.76 Index in 1980.
How does Australia rank for waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste?
Australia ranks 25th out of 35 countries with data for 2023.
Is waste - municipal waste: generation and treatment — total waste rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste generated. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/waste-municipal-waste-generation-and-treatment-total-waste-generated/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Waste - Municipal waste: generation and treatment — Total waste generated
Unit
Index
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
50 places, 1,548 data points, 1975–2024
Last refreshed

This dataset presents trends in amounts of municipal waste generated (including household waste), and the treatment and disposal method used. The amount of waste generated in each country is related to the rate of urbanisation, the types and pattern of consumption, household revenue and lifestyles. Data source(s): OECD Annual Quality Assurance (AQA) questionnaire (jointly collected with Eurostat) for OECD countries. UNSD, Country Files from the UNSD/UNEP data collection on environment statistics (available at: https://unstats.un.org/unsd/envstats/country_files) for non-OECD countries. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Dataset release date: March, 2026 Database documentation