Cypriots produce over 600kg each in waste every year

Cyprus in 2020 ranked seventh highest in the EU in terms of the per capita production of municipal solid waste, according to just-released data.

The Statistical Service said that in 2020, the average per capita production of municipal solid waste across the EU came to 517 kilogrammes. In Cyprus the per capita number was 609kg.

Austria had the highest production of municipal solid waste per capita, at 834kg. There followed Denmark at 814kg, Luxembourg at 790kg, Belgium at 746kg, Malta at 643kg, and Germany at 628kg.

The per capita numbers for 2021 are not yet available.

But data on the total production of solid waste in Cyprus in 2021 are available – 570,000 tonnes. This was up from 543,000 tonnes the year prior.

Of the 455,000 tonnes that were processed in 2021, 77.8 per cent ended up in disposal sites, 17.6 per cent went for recycling, 3.1 per cent used for energy recovery, and 1.5 per cent turned into compost.