14 EU countries risk missing recycling targets
Waste truck
(BRUSSELS) - 14 EU Member States are at risk of missing an EU target of 50 per cent municipal waste recycling by 2020, according to a European Commission report on the implementation of EU waste legislation.
The Commission's latest review of how European waste management and recycling rules are applied across Europe, published Monday, shows that, despite continuous progress in Member States, "serious gaps" need to to be addressed if Europeans are to reap the environmental and economic benefits of the EU's "circular economy".
For municipal waste, 14 Member States have been identified as at risk of missing the 2020 target of 50 per cent recycling. These are (Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.
The report says these countries need to do more to allow their populations and economies to benefit from the circular economy.
The EU executive is presenting blueprints for action to ensure that those countries act to comply with EU waste legislation.
The waste legislation forms the core of Europe's transition to the Circular Economy strategy proposed by the Commission, which says it is an "opportunity for growth, jobs and improving resource efficiency".
Europe can become the "global front-runner for modern waste management and further develop its circular economy", said Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella: "There are still differences across Europe, but progress is necessary and possible if the respective national and local authorities implement the actions identified in this report."
The Commission says it will help Member States by offering technical assistance, structural fund support and support in the exchange of best practices.
In a follow-up to this report, the Commission says it will undertake visits to the Member States at risk of not meeting the 2020 municipal waste targets, 'to discuss the opportunities and challenges with the national, regional and local authorities and the relevant stakeholders'.
Recent estimates by the World Bank point to an increase of annual waste generation from 2.01 billion tonnes in 2016 to 3.40 billion tonnes in 2050.