What do we see?
Of the total amount of household waste in Flanders, 66.7% is recycled or composted (incl. the selectively collected construction and demolition waste). Until 2007 there was a sharp increase in recycled household waste. Afterwards this gradually decreased because the number of selectively collected waste flows also dropped. The most important explanation for this is probably the stricter access control at the recycling companies, meaning that less industrial waste ends up in the household recycling centres.
As can be seen in the graph below, Flanders is one of the European leaders with a recycling percentage of 63.8% (excl. the selectively collected construction and demolition waste).
What’s the aim?
The 2018 revision of the European Waste Framework Directive included new objectives and a stricter calculation method. The new recycling objectives state that 55% of household waste must be recycled by 2025, 60% by 2030 and 65% by 2035.
In addition, the EU has set a binding target to send a maximum 10% of household waste to landfill by 2035. In 2019 only 0.4% of household waste (excl. construction and demolition waste) in Flanders was sent to landfill.
What does this indicator measure?
This indicator measures the proportion of household waste (incl. comparable industrial waste) that is recycled or composted. By measuring the percentage recycled we can assess how far along we are in our transition to a circular economy. The higher this percentage, the further along we are.
