Per capita municipal solid waste generation in Italy 2010-2021

The average Italian generated over 502 kilograms of municipal solid waste in 2021. The average volume of MSW generated per capita in Italy has remained steady over the past decade, averaging roughly 500 kilograms per inhabitant since 2010.

Regional waste generation

On average, residents in Emilia-Romagna generated more than 640 kilograms of municipal waste in 2021. This was the largest generation of municipal solid waste per inhabitant in Italy that year. This was followed by the other northern region of Aosta Valley, where approximately 602 kilograms of MSW were generated per inhabitant.  

Waste sorting and disposal

The volume of waste subjected to sorted collection has been steadily increasing in recent years, rising from approximately 12.5 million metric tons in 2013 to nearly 19 million metric tons in 2021. With regard to waste treatment methods, over one quarter of the municipal solid waste was treated for material recovery in 2021.