Environmental Indicators Ireland 2018

• Municipal waste generated in Ireland peaked in 2007 at 3.4 million tonnes per year, up from an annual average of 2.8 million tonnes in 2001-2004. It has subsequently fallen to 2.6 million tonnes in 2014. Waste generated per capita fell from an annual average 718 kgs in 2001-2004 to 564 in 2014.

• Ireland had the sixth highest level of municipal waste generated per capita in the EU in 2015 at 564 kilograms (kgs). The lowest level of municipal waste generated was Romania with 247 kgs per capita while Denmark had the highest level at 789 kgs capita. The EU average for municipal waste generated per capita was 481 kgs per capita in 2015.

• The annual average amount of municipal waste sent to landfill in Ireland peaked at 2 million tonnes in 2007 but it has fallen continuously since then to 537,000 tonnes in 2014.
• The percentage of municipal waste managed that was sent to landfill fell continuously over the 2001-2014 period from an annual average of 71% in 2001-2004 to 21% in 2014.

• Since 2001, Ireland has increased its rate of recovery of packaging waste such as cardboard, paper, glass, plastic, steel, aluminium and wood. The Packaging Directive 94/62/EC target of 50% set for 2005 was reached in 2004 and the 2011 target of 60% has been exceeded since 2007.
• In 2015, the recovery rate for packaging waste was 91%.

_{Note: Data for Cyprus and Malta refer to 2014}

• In 2015, Ireland recovered 190 kilograms (kgs) of packaging waste per capita, which was the third highest rate in the EU after Germany and Luxembourg. Croatia’s recovery rate at 31 kgs per capita was the lowest in the EU in 2015.

• The total weight of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collected in Ireland increased from 40,800 tonnes in 2012 to 48,600 tonnes in 2015.
• Large household appliances accounted for 54% of total WEEE collected in 2015, while consumer equipment accounted for 17% of the total.

^{Note: Data for Cyprus, Malta and Romania refer to 2014}

• Expressed in terms of kilograms per capita, Ireland had the sixth highest level of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collected in 2015. At 10.3 kgs per capita, this was more than double the 4 kgs per capita specified in the WEEE Directive. Sweden was the EU Member State with the highest level of WEEE collected in 2015 at 14.7 kgs per capita, while the EU average was 7.6. Romania had the lowest level of WEEE collected at 1.6 kgs per capita.

• The collection of construction and demolition waste in Ireland increased from 11.2 million tonnes in 2004 to 17.8 million tonnes in 2007. The amount collected fell substantially between 2007 and 2013, when only 2.9 million tonnes were collected, reflecting the decline in the building industry over this period. The amount of construction and demolition waste then increased to 4.6 million tonnes in 2016.