The European Commission has published a report on Member States' performance in the prevention and recycling of waste. This report shows that despite some Member States have made excellent progress, there is still some way from achieving the long-term goal of becoming a 'recycling society', a society  that not only avoids producing waste but also uses it as a resource.

Commission's report on the Strategy for preventing and recycling waste shows that in most Member States overall waste generation seems to be increasing, or at best stabilising but at a lower rate than economic growth.

According to some figures, over the last 10 years municipal waste generation has stabilised at around 524 kg per year per person, although household consumption has increased by around 16% during the same period. More could be done, therefore, to reduce the absolute generation of waste. For example, 25% of food bought by EU households is thrown away, and some 60% of this waste could be avoided, saving each household around 500 euro per year.

Besides, there are huge differences between Member States. Recycling rates vary from a few percent up to 70%. In some Member States landfilling has virtually disappeared, in others more than 90% of waste is still buried in the ground. This shows a significant margin for progress beyond the current EU minimum collection and recycling targets. The report recommends a combination of economic and legal instruments, as well as encouraging producer responsibility and more consistency between product design and waste policies.

Better legislation: Waste Directive and infringement control

The new Waste Framework Directive, which should have been transposed by 12 December 2010, has still not passed into national law in many EU countries. Member States had a transitional period of two years to put the necessary measures in place to comply with the new Directive. However, only a small number have so far informed the Commission of the transposition of the legislation. The Commission is monitoring the situation closely and, if necessary, will take action against those failing to implement the Directive.

The new Directive introduced the concept of 'life cycle thinking' with a binding waste hierarchy defining the order of priority for treating waste. Top of the list is waste prevention, followed by re-use, recycling and other recovery operations, with disposal such as landfill used only as the last resort. The Directive obliges Member States to modernise their waste management plans and to set up waste prevention programmes by 2013. They must also recycle 50% of their municipal waste and 70% of construction and demolition waste by 2020.

The Commission will continue to monitor the implementation and enforcement of waste legislation at national level, including the requirements of the new Waste Framework Directive. But it will also seek to develop support for Member States in designing appropriate strategies and policies upstream. To further consolidate its waste policies, the Commission will make further proposals in 2012 including setting out the concrete steps it will take in order to move closer towards an EU resource-efficient recycling society.