The director of the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund, Luka Balen, attended the presentation of the 2023 Municipal Waste Report, the details of which were presented by the minister of environmental protection and green transition, Marija Vučković.
"1,833,341 tonnes of municipal waste were generated in 2023, which is a negligible decrease of 0.6% compared to 2022. The annual amount of municipal waste per capita was 474 kilograms, the same as in 2022, which is still significantly lower than the EU per capita average in 2022 amounting to 513 kilograms,” said minister Vučković.
Most waste per capita is generated in coastal counties, which can be correlated with tourism. In general, in the total amount of municipal waste at national level, waste from tourism accounts for about 10%.
In 2023, the trend of increasing separately collected municipal waste continued, which now stands at 48%, and the change is best illustrated by the fact that, for example, in 2017, 72% of waste was not separated, while now 52% is not separated. The municipal waste disposal rate in 2023 was 52%, and by 2035, the disposal of municipal waste needs to be reduced to only 10%. "The trend of increasing the share of separately collected waste is continuously positive, and we have a task ahead of us to speed it up to reach the goals that we have not yet achieved, which we’ve defined in the Waste Management Plan", said the minister, pointing out that in addition to investments that support waste separation, it was necessary to continuously work on public campaigns and education.
From 2015 to 2023, there was an increase in separate waste collection by 24 percentage points. In 65% of local self-government units, or 363 of them, the rate of separate collection of municipal waste increased in 2023 compared to 2022. Since 2017, the number of local self-government units implementing separate waste collection has increased from 457 to 531, meaning that so far only 25 yet to introduce separate waste collection.
Vučković pointed out that 13 local self-government units, 12 of which are from Međimurje County, have a waste separation rate above 62%, which is definitely a positive example for Croatia in general.
In 2023, 282 recycling yards were operational, and the recovery rate was 38%. The highest values of the estimated waste recovery rate, as in previous years, were recorded in Međimurje County - 56%, Varaždin County 55%, and Koprivnica-Križevci County 49%, while the lowest rate values were recorded in Lika-Senj County with 23%, Dubrovnik-Neretva County 26%; the same ranking of counties applies to recycling rates.
The recycling rate in 2023 increased by two percentage points compared to 2022 and amounted to 36%, meaning that Croatia still has to reach the 50% target from the Waste Framework Directive. When we consider the period from 2020 to 2023, the best results were achieved for scrap metal, paper and cardboard, and glass, while significant efforts need to be made to improve the waste plastic and biowaste management system, as well as glass, said minister Vučković.
By the end of October, a tender of EUR 58 million for the recycling of construction waste, biowaste and plastic waste is expected to be announced, and an envelope of EUR 167 million from EU sources has been provided under the Competitiveness and Cohesion Programme.
"Our biggest task is to establish and enable smooth running of waste management centres by 2028," said Vučković.
