Waste - Waste by sector: generation, recovery and recycling — Total waste generated by country
This dataset presents data on waste by economic sector, using the major divisions of the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 4. Data source(s): (i) OECD State of the Environment questionnaire on waste for non-EU countries; (ii) EU Waste Framework Directive for EU-countries (available...
What the numbers show
Waste - Waste by sector: generation, recovery and recycling — Total waste generated is currently reported for 20 countries. The highest value is 484.26 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars in Bulgaria; the lowest is 24.49 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars in Ireland.
The median across all reporting countries is 77.83 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars, and the mean is 123.16 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 20.
Over the past decade 8 countries rose and 12 fell. The largest increase was in Iceland (up 65.0%), and the largest decrease in Greece (down 61.7%).
Waste - Waste by sector: generation, recovery and recycling — Total: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bulgaria | 484.26 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 52.5% | falling |
| 2 | Finland | 360.5 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 10.3% | rising |
| 3 | Sweden | 256.33 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 15.7% | rising |
| 4 | Romania | 222.22 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 53.7% | volatile |
| 5 | Austria | 127.68 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 33.9% | rising |
| 6 | Luxembourg | 118.84 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 8.0% | falling |
| 7 | France | 94.15 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 10.3% | falling |
| 8 | Belgium | 86.97 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 1.2% | flat |
| 9 | Greece | 83.38 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 61.7% | falling |
| 10 | United Kingdom | 79.9 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2018 | down 12.3% | falling |
| 11 | Czechia | 75.76 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 32.5% | flat |
| 12 | Germany | 74.79 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 7.0% | falling |
| 13 | Hungary | 71.35 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 20.4% | falling |
| 14 | Italy | 62.93 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 14.4% | rising |
| 15 | Spain | 55.89 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 14.4% | falling |
| 16 | Iceland | 51.88 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2020 | up 65.0% | rising |
| 17 | Denmark | 48.93 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 5.3% | rising |
| 18 | Portugal | 46.66 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 24.3% | falling |
| 19 | Norway | 36.19 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | up 11.2% | rising |
| 20 | Ireland | 24.49 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars | 2022 | down 48.6% | falling |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- Estonia 392.33 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Slovak Republic 65.38 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Slovenia 116.57 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Croatia 47.8 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Poland 111.09 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Netherlands 100.18 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Lithuania 45.26 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Türkiye 38.81 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
- Latvia 37.74 Kilogrammes per 1 000 US dollars
About this data
This dataset presents data on waste by economic sector, using the major divisions of the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 4. Data source(s): (i) OECD State of the Environment questionnaire on waste for non-EU countries; (ii) EU Waste Framework Directive for EU-countries (available in Eurostat database https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/environment/database); and (iii) 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: April 2025 Database documentation