Descrizione 1
Patrizia D'Alessandro
In 2022, the total amount of municipal waste disposed of in landfills amounted to approximately 5.2 million tons, with 117 operational landfill sites. Compared to 2021, there was a 7.9% decrease (-446 thousand tons) in the total quantity of municipal waste landfilled and a 3.8% reduction (-9 sites) in the number of operational landfill sites.
This indicator represents the amount of municipal waste disposed of in landfills and the number of operational landfill sites handling municipal waste.
To monitor the application of the European waste management hierarchy established by Article 4 of Directive 2008/98/EC and subsequent amendments, which considers landfill disposal as a residual form of waste management. Additionally, to verify the progress toward reducing the biodegradable fraction of municipal waste disposed of in landfills.
Directive 1999/31/EC on landfill waste and subsequent amendments.
Decision 2003/33/EC, which sets out criteria and procedures for waste acceptance at landfills under Article 16 and Annex II of Directive 1999/31/EC.
Legislative Decree 36/2003, implementing Directive 1999/31/EC on landfill waste.
Legislative Decree 152/2006, on environmental regulations (Part IV) and subsequent amendments.
Directive 2008/98/EC on waste and subsequent amendments.
Ministerial Decree of September 27, 2010, defining criteria for landfill waste acceptance, amended by Ministerial Decree of June 24, 2015.
Directive 2018/850/EU, amending Directive 1999/31/EC on landfill waste.
Directive 2018/851/EU, amending Directive 2008/98/EC on waste.
Legislative Decree No. 121/2020 (September 3, 2020), implementing Directive 2018/850/EU.
Directive 1999/31/EC sets waste reduction targets for each Member State. From the date of its entry into force:
Within 5 years, the biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) disposed of in landfills must be reduced to 75% (by weight) of the total BMW produced in 1995.
Within 8 years, it must be reduced to 50%.
Within 15 years, it must be reduced to 35%.
This directive was transposed into national legislation through Legislative Decree 36/2003, which establishes operational and technical requirements for landfill sites, defining construction criteria, management procedures, and environmental impact mitigation measures. Under this decree, regions developed programs to reduce the biodegradable fraction of landfill waste, setting short-term (173 kg per capita per year by 2008), medium-term (115 kg per capita per year by 2011), and long-term (81 kg per capita per year by 2018) targets.
Directive 2008/98/EC establishes key waste management principles, prioritizing environmentally preferable waste management options. In this hierarchy, landfill disposal is the least preferred option, intended only as a residual solution.
Criteria for landfill waste acceptance are defined in Legislative Decree 36/2003 and, more specifically, in the Ministerial Decree of September 27, 2010, which transposes Decision 2003/33/EC of the European Commission.
Directive 2018/850/EU, which entered into force on July 4, 2018, amends Directive 1999/31/EC and mandates a progressive reduction in landfill disposal of municipal waste, setting a 10% landfill disposal target by 2035.
Legislative Decree No. 121 of September 3, 2020 (amending Legislative Decree 152/2006), sets new recycling targets to be achieved by 2030 (at least 65%) and a reduction in landfill disposal to no more than 10% of total waste generated by 2035.
Descrizione 2
ISPRA, Rapporto Rifiuti Urbani - Edition 2023 (Rapporti n. 393/2023, integral version)
https://www.isprambiente.gov.it/it/pubblicazioni/rapporti/rapporto-rifiuti-urbani-edizione-2023
Qualificazione dati
ISPRA - Catasto rifiuti (http://www.catasto-rifiuti.isprambiente.it)
National (I), Regional (R 20/20)
1997-2022
Qualificazione indicatore
Landfill disposal data were compiled from the 2023 Environmental Declaration Form (MUD) for municipal waste, referring to the year 2022. These data were cross-checked with information collected through questionnaires sent by ISPRA to all relevant authorities responsible for permits and environmental monitoring (Regions, Provinces, Regional and Provincial Environmental Protection Agencies, and Provincial Waste Observatories). The data processing phase often reveals inconsistencies that require further investigation of individual landfill sites.
The biodegradable fraction of landfill waste is estimated by ISPRA based on the composition of mixed waste disposed of in landfills, verified through specific investigative campaigns.
Considering the total municipal waste production (approximately 29.16 million tons), 17.8% of municipal waste is still disposed of in landfills nationwide (Figure 1). According to Directive 2018/850/EU, this percentage must be reduced to 10% by 2035.
Between 2000 and 2022, the amount of municipal waste disposed of in landfills decreased by 76.4%, indicating a positive trend (Table 1). Specifically, in 2022 there was a 7.9% reduction compared to 2021, along with a decrease in the number of facilities (-9). In Northern Italy, the number of landfills declined from 53 in 2021 to 50 in 2022, in Central Italy from 28 to 25, and in Southern Italy from 45 to 42 (Table 3).
Dati
Table 1: Municipal waste landfilled, by geographical macro-area
ISPRA
Table 2: Amount of municipal waste landfilled at the regional level
ISPRA
Table 3: Number of municipal waste landfills by region
ISPRA
Figure 1: Trend of the percentage of municipal waste landfilled relative to the total municipal waste generated
ISPRA
Figure 2: Per capita amount of biodegradable municipal waste landfilled
Processing by ISPRA based on ISPRA and Istat data
In 2022, the total amount of municipal waste disposed of in landfills amounted to approximately 5.2 million tonnes, representing 17.8% of the total municipal waste generated at the national level (around 29.1 million tonnes). Of the total waste landfilled, 27% (about 1.4 million tonnes) was managed in facilities located in Northern Italy, 34% (around 1.8 million tonnes) in Central Italy, and 39% (2 million tonnes) in the South (Table 2).
A regional-level analysis shows a decrease in landfill disposal between 2021 and 2022, primarily attributable to Southern regions, where a reduction of approximately 417 thousand tonnes (-17.1%) was recorded. In Central Italy, there was an increase of 40 thousand tonnes (+2.4%), while Northern Italy saw a decrease of about 70 thousand tonnes (-4.8%).
In Southern Italy, the largest quantitative reductions were observed in Sicily (-approximately 256 thousand tonnes, -22.3%) and Puglia (-70 thousand tonnes, -13.4%). In both regions, the decline in municipal waste landfilled appears to be associated with an increase in separate collection. In Campania, where no operational landfills have been active since 2021, no waste is disposed of within the region, and all waste is instead sent to disposal facilities outside the regional territory. Conversely, the amount landfilled increased in Basilicata (+3.9%, equivalent to 3 thousand tonnes), due to a rise in pre-treated waste.
In Central Italy, as previously mentioned, landfill disposal increased by 40 thousand tonnes (+2.4%) in the last year, mainly due to the quantities landfilled in Lazio, where a 13.3% increase compared to 2021 was recorded (approximately +53 thousand tonnes). As in previous years, the region lacks sufficient treatment capacity to ensure full in-region waste management, resulting in inter-regional transfers. Umbria also reported an increase in landfilled municipal waste (+4.2%). On the other hand, the Marche region saw a slight decline (-2.9%), while the separate collection rate remained stable (71.6% in 2021 and 72% in 2022), and Tuscany reported a modest decrease of 0.9% (-7 thousand tonnes).
Northern Italy experienced a slight overall reduction in landfilled quantities (-4.8%, or about 70 thousand tonnes). Notable decreases occurred in Trentino-Alto Adige (-49.4%) and Emilia-Romagna (-31.7%), while Valle d’Aosta saw a sharp increase (+58.9%), correlated with a rise in municipal waste generation (Table 2).
In 2022, a total of 117 landfills for non-hazardous and hazardous waste were operational nationwide, receiving waste of municipal origin. Compared to 2021, this represents a reduction of 9 facilities (Table 3). Legislative Decree 36/2003 and subsequent amendments set progressive targets for the reduction of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) landfilling, to be achieved at the level of the optimal territorial area: short-term (173 kg/inhabitant/year by 2008), medium-term (115 kg/inhabitant/year by 2011), and long-term (81 kg/inhabitant/year by 2018). In 2022, the national per capita quantity of biodegradable municipal waste landfilled was 53 kg/inhabitant, well below the long-term target of 81 kg/inhabitant/year set for 2018 (Figure 2).
In 2022, eleven regions achieved the 2018 target (Piedmont, Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, Abruzzo, Calabria, Sardinia, and Puglia). The regions furthest from the target were Valle d’Aosta (220 kg/inhabitant), Molise (173 kg/inhabitant), and Marche (155 kg/inhabitant), partly due to the inflow of waste from other regions in the cases of Molise and Marche (Figure 2).