The EU needs to make a big push to secure better compliance with existing waste law. Non-implementation of EU waste law endangers human health and the environment, distorts competition, and is estimated to cost a total of €90 billion a year.
Waste management in the EU is improving, but implementation by the Member States of EU waste legislation remains patchy. This paper makes suggestions on how better compliance could be achieved.
This report investigates a range of economic instruments in place in the EU Member States to improve waste management. It focuses on disposal taxes, pay-as-you-throw systems and producer responsibility schemes, and attempts to assess their contribution to waste management performance.
This report supported the European Commission’s review of the Thematic Strategy on the Prevention and Recycling of Waste. It summarises available data on waste management in the EU, assesses progress towards the EU becoming a ‘recycling society’, outlines the achievements of the Waste Thematic Strategy, and makes recommendations for the development of future EU waste policies.