Environmental Indicators Ireland 2021

Municipal waste generated in Ireland peaked at 3.4 million tonnes in 2007, up from 2.7 million tonnes in 2001. It fell to 2.6 million tonnes in 2014, before increasing to 2.9 million tonnes in 2018.

Municipal waste per capita fell from 800 kilogrammes per capita in 2006 to 564 in 2014. By 2018 it had risen to 600 kilogrammes per capita.

There was a sharp decrease in the proportion of municipal waste sent to landfill in Ireland from 83.8% in 2001 to 14.6% in 2018.

The recovery rate of packaging waste (such as paper, cardboard, glass, plastic, steel, aluminium and wood) in Ireland increased from 25.3% in 2001 to 91.4% in 2015. It fell slightly to 91.1% in 2018.

The total weight of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collected in Ireland fell from 51,500 tonnes in 2007 to 39,600 in 2011, before rising to 62,700 in 2018.

Large household appliances accounted for 63% of total WEEE collected in 2018 and consumer equipment and photovoltaic panels for 13%.