The auditors found that the current recycling market faces challenges, separate waste collection remains at a very low level in some cases, and the disposal tariffs that citizens are charged do not necessarily cover all waste management costs.
“Circularity is a key enabler for realising the EU’s sustainable development goals. To achieve these goals, the EU should create the conditions necessary for a viable recycling industry”, said Stef Blok, the ECA Member responsible for the audit. “Citizens and businesses play a crucial role. Fiscal incentives, as well as requiring citizens to pay for the volume or weight of waste they generate, can encourage them to separate and reduce waste.”
Since EU law clearly prioritised the prevention, re-use and recycling of waste, targets and legal requirements for member states have followed suit. This is also reflected in the rules for EU funding, which have gradually favoured circular-economy investments excluding unsustainable practices, such as landfill. However, there are significant differences in how municipal waste targets are met across the EU – with little or no progress in a few member states – but the European Commission has initiated infringement proceedings slowly (for 2008 targets, they started only in 2024).
Another key challenge, according to the auditors, is the viability of the recycling industry. If there are not enough recycling facilities, targets cannot be met, but such facilities are either scarce in some member states, or – particularly those for plastics – risk closing due to rising costs, poor demand for their output, and imports of cheaper plastic from outside the EU. The auditors stress that providing a business case for recyclers is necessary, starting with identifying the demand- and supply-side challenges that affect the single market for circular products and secondary raw materials.
At national level, the auditors analysed a number of waste management projects co-financed by the EU, and found implementation delays and cost overruns. They also noted that in the audited member states (Greece, Poland, Portugal and Romania) progress towards effective municipal waste is slow because of insufficient public funding and an inability to fully utilise economic instruments, such as implementing deposit-return schemes, increasing the landfill tax, and applying a waste tariff based on the volume or weight of waste generated (the ‘pay-as-you-throw’ principle). Landfill taxes vary so significantly between member states that waste may even be shipped between countries for economic reasons. To address this issue, the auditors recommend assessing whether harmonising landfill and incineration taxes across the EU would be feasible.
