REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT and THE COUNCIL on statistics compiled pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics and their quality
Date: 2011-03-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU statistics, data collection, dissemination of information, report, statistical method, waste, waste management

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 17.3.2011 
COM(2011) 131 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL  

on statistics compiled pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics and 
their quality  

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   EN 

 
 
  
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL  

on statistics compiled pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics and 
their quality  

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1. 

1.1. 

1.2. 

1.3. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

4.1. 

4.2. 

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 

Regulation on waste statistics ...................................................................................... 3 

Data quality in a multi-method environment ............................................................... 3 

Quality control ............................................................................................................. 4 

Punctuality and timeliness ........................................................................................... 5 

Completeness ............................................................................................................... 5 

Data accuracy ............................................................................................................... 6 

Data coverage............................................................................................................... 6 

Breakdown by economic sectors.................................................................................. 7 

4.3.  Waste classification...................................................................................................... 8 

5. 

5.1. 

5.2. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

Comparability............................................................................................................... 8 

Comparability over time .............................................................................................. 8 

Comparability across countries .................................................................................... 9 

Burden on businesses ................................................................................................... 9 

Revision of the Waste Statistics Regulation .............................................................. 10 

Achievements and outlook......................................................................................... 11 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1. 

Regulation on waste statistics 

Article 8(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of 25 November 2002 on waste statistics1 requires the Commission to submit a report on the 
implementation  of  the  Regulation  every  three  years  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council. The first report was published in 20082.  

Section 7(3) of Annexes I and II stipulates that the quality reports from Member States are to 
be  included  in  the  report  provided  for  in  Article  8.  These  reports  are  available  on  the 
following Internet site: 

http://circa.europa.eu/Public/irc/dsis/pip/library?l=/wastesstatisticssregulat/data_transmission/
quality_statistics/2008 

This report summarises progress made since the first data delivery in 2006. The report covers 
the 27 EU Member States and considers the results of the latest data delivery in June 2010. 
The report also describes the transition from NACE Rev. 1.1 to NACE Rev. 2, and outlines 
the  changes  and  expected  improvements  that  will  result  from  the  revision  of  the  Waste 
Statistics Regulation. 

Starting  with  the  reference  year  2004,  the  Regulation  requires  the  EU  Member  States  to 
provide  data  every  second  year.  Annexes  I  and  II  set  out  the  requirements  for  statistics  on 
waste generation, waste treatment and waste treatment capacities. Results are broken down by 
waste categories according to the statistical nomenclature on waste (EWC-Stat), which is set 
out in Annex III to the Regulation.  

1.2. 

Data quality in a multi-method environment  

Regulation (EC) 2150/2002 defines the data to be submitted and the required quality but does 
not prescribe a specific method of drawing up waste statistics, which are thus compiled in a 
multi-method environment. This enables Member States to keep their data collection systems 
and to minimise the changes needed to comply with the Regulation. 

However,  the  multi-method  approach  may  result  in  methodological  differences  from  one 
country  to  another,  between  different  data  sets  from  the  same  country,  and  even  within 
individual data sets. This makes it difficult to safeguard data comparability and ensure high 
data quality. 

The way in which data quality can be measured depends on the methods used. For different 
methods,  there  are  different  quality  parameters  (e.g.  coefficient  of  variation  for  sample 
surveys,  sensitivity  analysis  for  modelling,  etc.).  In  particular,  the  combination  of  methods 
within  data  sets  makes  it  difficult  to  define  indicators  for  overall  data  quality.  As  a 
the  assessment  and 
consequence 
communication of data quality. 

the  Regulation’s  multi-method  approach  hampers 

1 
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OJ L 332, 9.12.2002, p. 1, as amended by Regulation (EC) No 849/2010 (OJ L 253, 28.9.2010, p. 2). 
COM(2008) 355 final, 13.6.2008. 

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In their quality reports, the Member States describe the data by reference to quality elements 
commonly used in the European Statistical System3 and set out in Regulation (EC) 1445/2005 
on the quality of waste statistics4.  

1.3. 

Quality control  

Since  the  first  data  delivery  in  2006,  Eurostat has  set  up  an  efficient  quality  control  system 
consisting of two steps. The first step is a quick evaluation of the data and quality reports, and 
an  evaluation  report  is  sent  out  to  the  countries  within  two  months  after  the  reporting 
deadline. The second step is a more in-depth validation with no strict deadline. 

The quick evaluation is made on the basis of five criteria: 

–  completeness of data sets; 

–  completeness of quality report; 

–  timeliness; 

–  proper application of definitions and classifications; 

–  application of sound statistical methods. 

In this phase, the data validation concerns mainly the internal coherence of the new data and 
the  developments  over  time.  The  analysis  is  made  at  a  highly  aggregate  level  and  aims  to 
detect important breaks in series.  

The  quick  evaluation  is  appreciated  by  the  countries,  which  is  reflected  in  the  immediate 
feedback to the questions raised in the evaluation reports, and ensures timely publication of 
the data. The country data are published in the Eurostat dissemination database three months 
after delivery deadline.  

The in-depth validation analyses the data at a more detailed level (e.g. by economic sectors 
and  by  waste  categories)  and  compares  patterns  and  developments  across  countries.  The 
validation checks include: 

–  intra-country  comparisons  of  waste  generation  with  values  from  previous  years  for  each 

economic activity using appropriate indicators;  

–  cross-country comparisons of the data for each economic activity; 

–  cross-checks  with  waste  data  from  other  reporting  obligations  such  as  compliance 

monitoring pursuant to other waste-related legislation. 

Potential questions are checked against the countries’ quality reports and the feedback to the 
quick  evaluation  and  may  result  in  a  second  set  of  questions  being  sent  to  the  countries 
concerned.  

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Eurostat website on Quality: 
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page?_pageid=2273.1 2273_47140765&_dad=portal&_schema=
PORTAL. 
OJ L 229, 6.9.2005, p. 6. 

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2. 

PUNCTUALITY AND TIMELINESS 

Data and quality reports are to be submitted within 18 months after the reference year, i.e. the 
delivery deadline for reference year 2008 was 30 June 2010. The countries were asked, in the 
event  of  incomplete  data  or  missing  quality  reports,  to  provide  the  missing  information  as 
soon as possible.  

At the time of this report, compliance with the reporting deadline for the reference year 2008 
can be summarised as follows:  

•  19 countries delivered their data sets in time; 

•  4 Member States submitted data within three weeks after the deadline so that they 
could  be  considered  in  the  first  evaluation  round  (Portugal,  Austria,  France, 
Cyprus);  

•  1 Member State (Romania) delivered data on 20 September 2010;  

•  3  Member  States  submitted  data  more  than  3  months  after  the  deadline:  Italy 
delivered on 11 November, Greece on 1 December and Ireland on 21 December 
2010.  Greece  and  Ireland  incurred  serious  delays  in  reporting  already  in  the 
previous reporting years.  

In summary, compliance with the reporting deadline for 2008 was satisfactory. In all 23 of the 
27  Member  States  submitted  their  deliveries  timely  or  with  a  delay  of  not  more  than  three 
weeks. A compliance monitoring routine is established at Eurostat and reminders are sent to 
Member  States  at  short  intervals  according  to  a  defined  schedule.  Hence,  punctuality  has 
improved  compared  to  the  reference  year  2006 when  18  countries  delivered  data  within  the 
same period.  

–  Publication 

The  data  on  waste  generation  and  waste  treatment  were  published  in  the  Eurostat 
dissemination  database  on  4  October.  An  update  of  the  database  is  expected  after  the 
finalisation of the in-depth validation.  

3. 

COMPLETENESS 

The  delivery  of  complete  data  sets  is  crucial  for  the  production  of  EU  aggregates.  Missing 
data  limit  the  interpretation  and  the  informative  value  of  waste  statistics.  Countries  are 
therefore asked to minimise the amount of missing data, if necessary by sending in estimates. 

In the first reporting round for the reference year 2004, 6 of the 27 EU Member States were 
able to provide complete data sets on waste generation covering all waste categories and all 
sectors. 21 Member States delivered data sets with some gaps. Most data gaps related either to 
waste  generated  in  agriculture,  forestry,  hunting  (NACE  A 01,  A 02)  and  fishery  (NACE  A 
03) or to the reporting on sludges (in weight and dry weight). Overall, the share of missing 
values on waste generation amounted to about 9 % of the required data.  

For  the  reference  year  2006,  the  completeness  of  data  improved  considerably.  The  share  of 
missing  values  on  waste  generation  fell  to  2.1 %.  Missing  data  were  reported  by  only  7 

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countries whereas 20 Member States provided complete data sets. The share of missing data is 
highest  for  the  sectors  already  mentioned  above  (NACE  A 01–03).  The  highest  shares  of 
missing values in 2006 were reported by Ireland, Italy and Latvia. 

With regard to the data on waste treatment, the number of countries with incomplete data sets 
at  national  level  also  decreased  significantly  between  2004  and  2006.  In  2004,  15  countries 
reported incomplete data sets. The share of missing data for the EU-27 accounted for 2.5 % of 
the required data. In 2006, only 5 countries delivered incomplete data on the amounts of waste 
treated.  The  share  of  the  missing  values  fell  to  1.5 %.  More  than  70 %  of  the  missing  data 
relate to the disposal of waste through ‘land treatment and release into water bodies’, which is 
mainly applied for non-hazardous sludges. 

A further improvement of data completeness for waste generation and treatment is noticed for 
the  reference  year  2008.  However,  due  to  the  late  data  delivery  of  three  countries  the 
evaluation was still ongoing by the time this report was drafted.  

4. 

DATA ACCURACY  

Accuracy deals with the closeness between the estimated or computed value and the exact or 
true  value,  including  aspects  such  as  sampling  errors,  data  coverage,  applied  thresholds, 
non-response, adjustments, controls and corrections, or confidentiality. 

4.1. 

Data coverage  

The objective of the Regulation is to produce statistics on waste in accordance with the scope 
of  Directive  2008/98/EC.  Statistics  on  waste  generation  must  be  compiled  for  all  economic 
sectors  and  for  households,  and  must  include  waste  arising  from  recovery  and  disposal 
operations — what is known as secondary waste. The statistics should also cover waste from 
small  businesses  (<  10  employees)  although  such  firms  should  be  exempt  from  surveys 
wherever possible.  

Statistics on waste treatment cover all waste that is recovered or disposed of within a country, 
irrespective of the origin of the waste. The underlying concept of the Regulation is to collect 
data on the final destination of waste; preparatory treatment operations are not covered. 

Excluded  from  the  scope  of  the  Regulation  is  all  waste  that  is  recycled  directly  at  the  site 
where the waste was generated. 

–  Coverage errors  

The observed coverage errors are mostly connected with one of the following aspects:  

–  unclear (legal) definitions, e. g. the distinction between waste and non-waste; 

–  imported and exported wastes;  

–  coverage with regard to secondary waste and small enterprises;  

–  problems concerning specific economic sectors (e.g. construction and demolition 

activities). 

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The  overall  impact  of  coverage  errors  is  hard  to  assess.  Coverage  errors  may  lead  to 
underestimations  as  well  as  to  overestimations.  The  possible  impacts  of  methodological 
adaptations are illustrated by examples from Poland and Sweden. For the reference year 2008, 
Poland brought data coverage for animal faeces and manure into line with European case law 
(Case  C-416/02),  and  excluded  from  waste  statistics  the  amount  of  manure  that  is  used  on 
farmland.  In  Sweden,  data  coverage  for  wood  waste  and  animal  and  vegetal  waste  was 
reassessed  with  regard  to  the  criteria  for  distinguishing  between  waste  and  by-products5.  In 
both countries, the adjustments led to a considerable reduction in the generated amounts, of 
about 96 million tonnes in Poland and 21 million tonnes in Sweden. 

4.2. 

Breakdown by economic sectors 

The Regulation calls on the Member States to break down their data by 20 waste generating 
activities  (19  economic  sectors  plus  households).  Correct  allocation  to  the  generating 
activities is a prerequisite for: 

–  the comparability of sector-specific waste amounts; 

–  the coherence of waste statistics with business statistics. 

The  breakdown  of  economic  activities  is  defined  by  reference  to  the  Classification  of 
Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE). For the reference years 2004 and 
2006  NACE  Rev.  1.1  applied;  as  of  the  year  2008,  data  are  collected  according  to  NACE 
Rev. 2.  

–  Transition to NACE Rev. 2 

The  new  breakdown  by  economic  categories  according  to  NACE  Rev.  2  is  defined  in 
Annex IV  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  1893/20066.  On  account  of  the  high  level  of  aggregation 
used in the Regulation on waste statistics the impact of the transition from NACE Rev. 1.1 to 
NACE  Rev. 2  is  limited;  17  of  the  19  economic  aggregates  applied  for  waste  statistics  are 
basically identical.  

The biggest  change  has to do with the classification  of  waste  management  activities.  Waste 
management activities that were so far covered by Sewage and refuse disposal, sanitation and 
similar  activities  (NACE  Rev.  1.1,  division  90)  are  assigned  to  the  new  division  38  Waste 
collection,  treatment  and  disposal  activities;  materials  recovery  whereas  the  Collection  and 
treatment of sewage (NACE rev. 1.1 code 9001) is assigned to the new division 37 Sewerage. 
As a result, most waste management activities will be concentrated in the new division 38. To 
maintain  the  time  series  at  the  level  of  economic  sectors  the  data  on  waste  management 
activities  for  2004  and  2006  are  converted  into  the  breakdown  according  to  NACE  Rev. 2. 
The conversion is carried out by Eurostat in consultation with the Member States.  

Furthermore,  Publishing  (NACE  rev.  1.1,  code  221)  has  been  moved  from  manufacturing 
industry  (sub-section  DE)  to  the  new  section  J  Information  and  communication  and  is  thus 
part  of  service  activities.  In  this  case,  no  conversion  of  the  2004  and  2006  data  is  intended 
unless the data analyses were to reveal a significant impact on the time series.  

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6 

Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the interpretative 
communication on waste and by-products (COM(2007) 59 final). 
OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1. 

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–  Misclassification  

The way waste is allocated to the generating sector depends on the methods applied for data 
collection.  There  is  a  significant  risk  of  misallocation  in  countries  where  data  on  waste 
generation  are  derived  indirectly  from  waste  treatment  data.  This  is  the  approach  taken  by 
Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Austria and Malta. Information on the generating company or 
sector is known only from secondary sources (e.g. waste collector, waste treatment operator) 
or has to be derived by other means (e.g. by models or by using the European List of Waste7, 
which contains information on the origin of waste). 

Some  of  the  countries  concerned  have  modified  their  approaches  in  order  to  improve  the 
classification by economic sectors. Germany has established an additional sample survey on 
waste  generators  in  order  to  assign  the  generated  waste  more  accurately  to  the  sources. 
Lithuania also intends to introduce an additional survey on waste generation. Austria expects 
an improvement of waste allocation to sectors through a new electronic information system. 
Denmark  is  introducing  a  new  waste  data  system  to  increase  compliance  with  the  required 
breakdown from reference year 2012 onwards. 

4.3.  Waste classification 

The  importance  of  waste  classification  for  accurate  and  comparable  waste  statistics  is 
obvious: waste categories must cover the same waste types in Member States in order to be 
usable for the monitoring of waste policies at EU level. 

The  Regulation  defines  the  breakdown  by  waste  categories  according  to  the  statistical 
nomenclature  EWC-Stat  but  does  not  prescribe  a  specific  classification  to  be  used  for  data 
collection. Countries are free to use any waste classification as long as they can produce the 
defined formats in the required quality. 

Most of the countries collect their data according to the European List of Waste (LoW), which 
comprises  839  waste  types.  Despite  some  application  problems  of  the  LoW  the  widespread 
use  of  this  classification  ensures  a  high  level  of  comparability.  The  overall  impact  of 
classification errors on data accuracy is assumed to be small. 

5. 

COMPARABILITY 

5.1. 

Comparability over time  

With  the  third  reporting  round  having  been  accomplished  a  first  assessment  of  the 
comparability of the data over time is possible.  

The  evaluation  of  the  countries’  quality  reports  shows  that  considerable  adjustments  to 
national waste statistics approaches were made by nearly all Member States. Most countries 
are now further improving their data collection with regard to data quality (e.g. closing of data 
gaps; improvement of coverage) and with regard to the efficiency of their methods. 

However, the comparison of data for 2008 with the previous years, which indicates a decrease 
in  waste  generation  of  about  309  million  tonnes  or  10.9 %,  shows  that  methodological 

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Decision 2000/532/EC as regards the list of wastes, OJ L 226, 6.9.2000, p.3. 

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modifications in individual countries may still have significant impacts on the EU aggregates. 
This is best illustrated by the fact that this development can be attributed to methodological 
changes  in  three  Member  States.  Whereas  the  reductions  in  Poland  and  Sweden  are  due  to 
adjustments of data coverage (see section 4.1), France reported considerably lower amounts 
of  waste  from  the  construction  sector  (NACE  Rev.  1.1,  section  F)  as  a  result  of  a  newly 
introduced, more accurate survey of the construction sector.  

The  data  validation  system  by  Eurostat  ensures  that  breaks  in  time  series  are  identified  and 
either corrected or explained. In addition, the countries’ quality reports have proven to be a 
useful tool to monitor methodological changes and their impacts in Member States.  

To ensure a consistent time series at the level of economic sectors, the data for 2004 and 2006 
were adjusted for the changes in the breakdown by sectors that result from the transition to 
NACE Rev. 2. In addition, the data for 2004 that were missing on account of derogations for 
11 countries were imputed retrospectively on the basis of the data for 2006. 

5.2. 

Comparability across countries 

Thanks  to  the  common  definitions  and  classifications  the  comparability  of  the  data  across 
countries  is  fairly  high.  Differences  between  countries  with  regard  to  the  generated  and 
treated  totals  become  more  and  more  explainable.  Some  problems  remain  where  countries 
have not used statistical units to link to the economic activities that generate the waste. This 
does  not  affect  the  total  amounts  of  waste  reported  but  hampers  the  comparability  by 
economic sectors.  

The  thorough  data  analysis,  inter  alia  by  means  of  sector-specific  indicators,  ensures  a 
continuous improvement of comparability across countries. 

6. 

BURDEN ON BUSINESSES 

The  Regulation  on  waste  statistics  asks  Member  States  to  reduce  the  burden  by  providing 
access to administrative data and to exclude small firms with fewer than 10 employees from 
surveys unless they contribute significantly to waste generation. 

Most Member States do not measure the burden in physical terms and can therefore provide 
only qualitative assessments. In the quality reports for the reference year 2008, seven Member 
States provided figures on the time required by respondents. The Czech Republic, Denmark, 
Germany,  Slovenia  and  the  UK  report  a  burden  of  between  30  minutes  and  four  hours  per 
respondent.  Clearly  longer  times  are  reported  as  being  needed  by  Sweden  (up  to  25  hrs  per 
respondent) and by Poland (up to 40 hrs). In spite of the lengthy time requirements, Sweden 
considers the total burden of waste statistics as very light as by far most of the information is 
drawn from administrative sources and direct inquiry is applied only for a very low number of 
enterprises. In Poland, the heavy burden is partly due to the fact that the reporting system is 
being changed from statistical surveys to the use of an administrative information system and 
companies have to report according to both systems until the new system is established.  

The  greatest  help  to  companies  is  to  avoid  double  reporting  by  using  administrative  data 
and/or  by  coordinating  waste  surveys  among  the  institutions  concerned  (statistical  offices, 
ministries of the environment, environmental agencies). For 15 Member States, administrative 
data are the main data source for waste statistics. Other countries use administrative data as 
one of many data sources. 

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The exemption of small companies from surveys is handled in different ways. Some countries 
cover small companies by sample surveys and extrapolate the results. Most, though, exclude 
them completely, the figures being either ignored or extrapolated by factor-based estimation 
models.  Countries  have  established  different  exclusion  thresholds,  defined  mostly  by  the 
number of employees or by the amount of waste generated per year. Some countries combine 
the two criteria to make sure that even small companies are covered by data collection when 
they exceed the defined waste generation threshold. 

7. 

REVISION OF THE WASTE STATISTICS REGULATION  

After  the  first  two  reporting  periods  some  deficits  had  become  obvious  and  areas  for 
improvement  were  already  identified  in  the  first  report  to  the  European  Parliament  and 
Council  (COM(2008)  355).  In  addition, 
the  revised  Waste  Framework  Directive 
(2008/98/EC) establishes new information needs and amended definitions.  

A task force was therefore set up in autumn 2008 to address all possible topics and prepare 
final recommendations for the revision of the Annexes to the Regulation. At the end of July 
2009 a set of documents containing details and an explanation of the suggested changes were 
sent out to Member States for consultation. The resulting legal proposal was adopted by the 
Commission on 27 September 20108.  

The aims of the revision were to: 

–  increase the usability of waste statistics; 

–  simplify the provisions of the Regulation; 

–  align the Regulation with other reporting obligations on waste.  

The  most  important  change  is  the  harmonisation  of  the  breakdown  by  waste  categories  in 
section  2  of  Annexes  I  and  II  to  the  Regulation.  The  different  breakdowns  hampered  data 
validation  as  well  as  the  interpretation  and  communication  of  results.  In  future,  waste 
generation  and  waste  treatment  will  be  reported  according  to  the  same  51  waste  categories. 
Although this will lead to a nominal increase of the data to be reported the new provision is 
not expected to lead to an extra burden. 

In  addition,  some  waste  categories  have  been  reorganised  or  newly  introduced  in  order  to 
increase the usability of data, e.g. for the monitoring of waste policies. This includes: 

–  separate waste categories for mineral waste from construction and demolition, for 

soils and for dredging spoil;  

–  separate  waste  categories  for  liquid  and  mineral  wastes  from  waste  treatment 

(secondary wastes); 

–  reorganisation of the categories animal and vegetal waste and metal wastes; 

–  aggregation of different chemical wastes in one category. 

8 

Commission  Regulation  (EU)  No  849/2010  of  27  September  2010  amending  Regulation  (EC)  No 
2150/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council on waste statistics (OJ L 253, 28.9.2010, p. 2). 

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Furthermore, the waste treatment categories were reorganised in order to bring the Regulation 
into line with the definitions and requirements of the revised Waste Framework Directive, and 
to  integrate  data  on  the  number  and  capacity  of  landfills  that  are  so  far  collected  under 
Directive 1999/31/EC on landfills9.  

Data  on  treated  waste  quantities  according  to  Annex  II  will  have  to  be  reported  at  national 
level  only.  Reporting  on  the  NUTS  1  level  is  abandoned  as  there  is  no  documented  policy 
need  for  this  information.  Reporting  requirements  on  the  number  and  capacity  of  waste 
treatment facilities were reduced as some of the data produced proved to be of limited use.  

Altogether, the revision of the Regulation is expected to raise the usability and clarity of the 
data without putting an additional burden on the countries. Although the revision will lead to 
some  breaks,  the  continuity  of  the  data  over  time  will  be  maintained  to  a  high  degree.  The 
revised Regulation will apply as of reference year 2010.  

The Manual for the Implementation of the Waste Statistics Regulation has been adapted to the 
upcoming changes.  

–  Statistics on the import and export of waste 

Article  1(3)  of  the  Waste  Statistics  Regulation  stipulates  that,  after  pilot  studies  have  been 
conducted  pursuant  to  Article  5(1),  waste  statistics  are  to  cover  the  import  and  export  of 
wastes  for  which  no  data  are  collected  under 
the  Waste  Shipment  Regulation 
(1013/2006/EC)10,  i.e.  for  the  so-called  ‘green  list’  wastes.  Based  on  these  provisions, 
Eurostat  drew  up  a  pilot  study  programme  in  the  period  from  2003  to  2007  in  which  11 
countries participated.  

Based  on  the  studies,  the  results  of  which  are  summarised  in  the  Commission’s  report 
COM(2008) 501, a proposal was discussed with the Member States in November 2009. The 
discussion  showed  that  several  countries  would  have  considerable  difficulties  with  the 
implementation  of  regular  statistics  on  import  and  export  of  waste.  As  a  result,  Eurostat 
decided to review the user needs and the political justification for these statistics. 

8. 

ACHIEVEMENTS AND OUTLOOK 

Significant progress has been achieved with regard to the compilation of waste statistics since 
the  first  reporting  in  2006.  The  punctuality  and  completeness  of  data  delivery  by  Member 
States  as  well  as  the  timeliness  of  data  publication  have  steadily  improved.  Waste  statistics 
have reached a fairly high degree of comparability across countries and considerable progress 
is being made towards full data coverage. Overall, the data are of appropriate quality for most 
countries.  

The  harmonisation  of  data  is  furthered  by  a set  of  methodological  guidance  documents  that 
are  available  from  the  website  of  the  Environmental  Data  Centre  on  Waste.  Errors  and 
methodological deficits are identified by the quality control system.  

9 

10 

Commission Decision of 17 November 2000 concerning a questionnaire for Member States reports on 
the implementation of Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste (OJ L 298, 25.11.2000, p. 24). 
OJ L 190, 12.7.2006, p. 1, last amended by OJ L 119, 13.5.2010, p. 1. 

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11 

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With the data delivery for 2008, data on waste generation and treatment are now available for 
the  period  from  2004  to  2008.  With  the  extension  of  the  time  series  the  data  become 
increasingly  useful,  e.g.  for  building  indicators  and  for  use  in  the  field  of  Environmental 
Accounts.  

At the same time, it has to be mentioned that methodological changes in individual countries 
may still have a significant impact on the time series, at national level but also at the level of 
the  EU-27  aggregate.  Developments  over  time  should  thus  still  be  interpreted  with  caution 
and after careful analysis of the underlying data. Also, the effect of new concepts introduced 
by the revised Waste Framework Directive, i.e. end-of-waste criteria, on waste statistics has to 
be observed. 

Indicators  on  hazardous  waste  generation  and  on  the  generation  of  non-mineral  waste  have 
been developed and are being integrated into  the set of Sustainable Development Indicators 
and the indicators for monitoring the Europe 2020 strategy. The development of an indicator 
for recycling is, however, still ongoing.  

A  considerable  improvement  with  regard  to  the  usability  and  interpretability  of  waste 
statistics is expected from the revision of the Regulation that will apply as of reference year 
2010.  

EN 

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   EN