REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the implementation of the EU waste legislation Directive 2006/12/EC on waste, Directive 91/689/EEC on hazardous waste, Directive 75/439/EEC on waste oils, Directive 86/278/EEC on sewage sludge, Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste, Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste, and Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment for the period 2007 - 2009
Date: 2013-01-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU Member State, chemical waste, disclosure of information, electronic waste, environmental statistics, hazardous waste, industrial waste, metal waste, sewage sludge, unauthorised dumping, waste disposal, waste recycling

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 17.1.2013  
COM(2013) 6 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE 
COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE 
COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

on the implementation of the EU waste legislation 

Directive 2006/12/EC on waste,  
Directive 91/689/EEC on hazardous waste,  
Directive 75/439/EEC on waste oils, Directive 86/278/EEC on sewage sludge,  
Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste,  
Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste, and 
Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment 
for the period 2007 - 2009 

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REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE 
COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE 
COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

on the implementation of the EU waste legislation 

Directive 2006/12/EC on waste,  
Directive 91/689/EEC on hazardous waste,  
Directive 75/439/EEC on waste oils, Directive 86/278/EEC on sewage sludge,  
Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste,  
Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste, and 
Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment 
for the period 2007 - 2009 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

This report aims to inform about the implementation of the EU legislation on waste over the 
period 2007-2009. It covers Directives 2006/12/EC on waste, 91/689/EC on hazardous waste, 
75/439/EEC  on  waste  oils,  86/278/EEC  on  sewage  sludge,  94/62/EC  on  packaging  and 
packaging  waste,  1999/31/EC  on  the  landfill  of  waste,  2002/96/EC  on  waste  electrical  and 
electronic  equipment.  Separate  reports  will  cover  the  implementation  of  Regulation  (EC) 
1013/2006 on shipments of waste, Directive 2006/21/EC on the management  of waste  from 
the extractive industries, and Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of-life vehicles. 

The  report  is  based  on  information  supplied  by  Member  States.  Detailed  reports  on  each 
Directive can be accessed at: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/reporting/index.htm. 

Directives 2006/12/EC on waste, 91/689/EC on hazardous waste, and 75/439/EEC on waste 
oils  have  been  repealed  with  effect  from  12  December  2010  by  the  revised  Directive 
2008/98/EC on waste which incorporates their main provisions. Hence, this is the last report 
concerning  the  implementation  of  these  Directives.  New  Implementation  Questionnaire  has 
been established for Directive 2008/98/EC1. An overview of the changes in the waste acquis 
is illustrated in Figure 1 in the Annex to this Report. 

2. 

TIMELINESS AND QUALITY OF REPORTING 

For the reporting period 2007-2009, almost all of the Member States have complied with their 
reporting obligations2. However, the reporting discipline of Member States still leaves space 
for improvement: Reports from four Member States were not provided on time, the submitted 
reports  sometimes  did  not  contain  replies  to  all  questions,  and  information  was  not  always 
complete.  

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2 

Commission Implementing Decision of 18 April 2012 establishing a questionnaire for Member States 
reports on the implementation of Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 
on waste, http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/reporting/pdf/C_2012_2384.pdf.  
With the exception of France, Greece, Malta and the Belgian regions of Brussels and Wallonia which, 
at the time of the finalisation of this report, did not provide a full set of implementation reports. 

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As  regards  the  annual  recycling  and  recovery  data  on  waste  electrical  and  electronic 
equipment  (WEEE)  and  packaging,  most  Member  States  referred  to  the  annual  reports 
submitted to EUROSTAT. For the majority of Member States, no data was available for the 
year 2009 (which as regards WEEE is in line with the reporting requirements). A complete set 
of data for 2007 and 2008 for WEEE and packaging was available for overall recycling and 
recovery rates as well as material or waste stream specific recycling and collection rates. 

The quality of reporting and information provided varied considerably. Member States often 
provided unclear answers. Although in some cases this might be attributed to lack of clarity in 
formulation  of  several  questions  in  the  implementation  questionnaires,  Member  States’ 
answers were repeatedly vague, for example with frequent references to national legislation, 
but without indicating further details, even where explanation or details on experiences were 
explicitly requested. 

3. 

DIRECTIVE 2006/12/EC ON WASTE (WASTE FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE, WFD) 

This Directive, now repealed and replaced by Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, established the 
basic  requirements,  definitions  and  principles  regarding  waste  management  in  the  EU. 
Adopted  in  1975  and  substantially  revised  in  1991,  the  WFD  has  been  amended  numerous 
times.  Directive  2006/12/EC  (hereafter  the  "2006  WFD"),  a  codified  version  of  a  previous 
Directive 75/442/EEC, was the relevant document for the reporting period 2007 - 2009. 

The 2006 WFD introduced crucial definitions on waste management (such as the definition of 
“waste”),  obliged  Member  States  to  establish  adequate  networks  of  waste  disposal 
installations,  introduced  a  three-step  waste  management  hierarchy  promoting  waste 
prevention over its recovery, with disposal as the last resort. The Directive obliged Member 
States to ensure that waste was recovered or disposed of without endangering human health 
and the environment,  and  prohibited  the abandonment, dumping  or  uncontrolled disposal of 
waste. It required Member States to draw up national waste management plans (WMPs) and 
introduced an obligation to obtain a permit for waste handling. 

All reporting Member States confirmed having incorporated the Directive into their national 
laws, and complying with its basic requirements, including establishing one or more WMPs 
and  undertaking  steps  towards  self-sufficiency  in  waste  disposal.  In  addition,  all  reporting 
Member  States  confirmed  compliance  with  the  provisions  of  the  2006  WFD  on  permit 
requirements and record keeping. 

However, an important deficiency in the application of EU waste law could be identified in 
terms  of  waste  treatment  options  chosen.  Statistics  showed  that  many  Member  States  were 
still  largely  depending  on  landfilling  of  household  waste,  which  was  not  in  line  with  the 
concept of the waste hierarchy as emphasized by Article 3(1) of the 2006 WFD, and will be in 
even starker contrast with the requirements of the revised WFD which introduces a five-step 
waste  management  hierarchy.  In  2009,  the  treatment  methods  for  municipal  waste  varied 
significantly  between  Member  States,  ranging  from  extremely  high  reliance  on  landfilling 
(Bulgaria,  Romania,  Malta,  Lithuania,  and  Latvia  landfilling  over  90%  of  their  waste)  to 
below  5%  of  landfilling  (Belgium,  Denmark,  Germany,  the  Netherlands,  Austria,  and 
Sweden). The highest recycling (including composting3) rate was achieved in Austria (70%), 

3 

Composting  is  a  process  which  turns  biomass  into  compost  with  the  use  of  oxygen  and  certain 
microorganisms  (for  detailed  explanation  of  different  forms  of  treatment  of  biodegradable  waste,  see 

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followed  by  Germany  (66%),  Belgium  and  the  Netherlands  (60%),  and  Sweden  (55%). 
Sweden,  Denmark,  the  Netherlands,  Luxembourg,  Belgium,  Germany  and  France  had  the 
highest  incineration  rates  (no  distinction  between  incineration  with  and  without  energy 
recovery at the time). These large discrepancies were, to a certain extent, a result of the late 
implementation  of  waste  legislation  in  the  Member  States  which  joined  the  EU  after  2004. 
Progress in those countries will therefore have to be carefully monitored as the main indicator 
of  effectiveness  of  their  waste  management  policies.  However,  some  older  Member  States 
have  demonstrated  consistently  low  levels  of  performance  (e.g.  Greece  with  82%  of 
landfilling,  Portugal  with  only  20%  of  recycling).  Progress  should  be  encouraged  in  these 
countries through targeted advice and use of Structural and Cohesion funding. 

Some  progress  in  municipal  waste  management  could  be  observed  in  comparison  with  the 
previous reporting period, which is probably to be explained by improved waste management 
infrastructure  established  over  the  past  years.  The  implementation  of  waste-stream  specific 
EU  Directives  (such  as  the  Packaging  Directive,  the  WEEE  Directive  or  the  Batteries 
Directive) and measures aiming at fulfilling the targets contained therein were driving factors, 
too, since infrastructure, collection schemes, information campaigns etc. introduced to comply 
with this legislation would have contributed to an overall improvement of waste management. 
However,  overall  figures  on  waste  management  in  general,  and  on  municipal  waste 
management  in  particular,  remain  unsatisfying,  bearing  in  mind  the  aim  of  the  EU  to  move 
towards a European recycling society as now emphasized by the revised WFD 2008/98/EC. 
There  are  still  huge  recycling  potentials  leaving  more  than  half  of  the  existing  resources 
embedded  in  waste  unused,  and  immediate  efforts  need  to  be  taken  to  step  up  introducing 
modern, resource-efficient waste management systems. 

4. 

DIRECTIVE 91/689/EEC ON HAZARDOUS WASTE 

The  Hazardous  Waste  Directive  –  now  repealed,  with  its  main  provisions  forming  part  of 
Directive  2008/98/EC  on  waste  –  introduced  a  uniform  definition  of  hazardous  waste  and 
ensured  environmentally  sound  management  of  this  waste  stream.  A  number  of  controls,  in 
addition to those laid down in the 2006 WFD, were imposed in respect of the management of 
hazardous  waste,  including  a  mixing  ban  of  hazardous  waste,  traceability  requirements  and 
the notification to the Commission of wastes exhibiting hazardous properties but not listed as 
such. 

All reporting Member States have transposed the relevant provisions of the Hazardous Waste 
Directive  into  their  national  laws.  However,  the  information  provided  by  the  reporting 
Member States was not in all cases precise and exhaustive. In particular, concerns continue to 
exist  as  regards  the  enforcement  of  the  mixing  ban  and  the  related  exemptions.  There  are 
doubts  whether  inspections  based  on  specific  cases  and  complaints  as  reported  by  some 
Member  States  were  sufficient  to  comply  with  the  requirement  for  appropriate  periodic 
inspections.  Additionally,  it  is  not  always  obvious  whether  the  inspections  as  well  as  the 
reporting requirements really covered producers of hazardous waste or generally undertakings 
or establishments involved in waste management. 

Box  2  of  Commission  Staff  Working  Document  accompanying  the  Communication  from  the 
Commission on future steps in bio-waste management in the European Union, SEC(2010) 577 final, at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/compost/pdf/sec_biowaste.pdf.) 

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5. 

DIRECTIVE 75/439/EEC ON THE DISPOSAL OF WASTE OILS 

The Waste Oils Directive has also been repealed as of 12 December 2010 - waste oils are now 
covered by Directive 2008/98/EC on waste. 

All  Member  States  transposed  the  Waste  Oils  Directive  into  national  legislation.  The 
assessment  of  the  Member  States’  reports  demonstrated  that  appropriate  permitting  and 
control  mechanisms  were  put  in  place  in  order  to  prevent  the  negative  environmental  and 
health impacts from the management of waste oils. 

In  2008  and  2009,  a  mix  of  treatment  methods  was  applied  across  the  EU.  Seven  Member 
States gave priority to regeneration of waste oils over their combustion and landfilling, four 
Member  States  focused  on  combustion,  and  one  chose  landfilling  as  a  management  option. 
Two  Member  States  were  exporting  a  remarkable  share  of  their  waste  oils.  Eight  Member 
States could not be analysed in detail due to missing data. The remaining five Member States 
opted for a mix of all three treatment options. 

A  number  of  Member  States  identified  some  constraints  preventing  the  regeneration  or 
combustion  of  waste  oils.  The  most  common  reasons  were  small  quantities  of  oil  produced 
and collected and, consequently, the lack of processing capacities. From an economic point of 
view,  investments  into  waste  oil  treatment  infrastructure  did  not  seem  reasonable  for  those 
countries. 

6. 

DIRECTIVE 86/278/EEC ON SEWAGE SLUDGE 

The Sewage Sludge Directive aims at encouraging the use of sewage sludge in agriculture and 
preventing  its  harmful  effects  on  soil,  vegetation,  animals  and  human  health.  The  Directive 
contains a number of requirements on the quality of sludge for use in agriculture, the quality 
of  the  soil  on  which  sludge  is  to  be  used,  or  the  limitation  of  sludge  application  for  certain 
purposes  and  in  certain  time  periods.  The  main  objective  of  these  requirements  is  to  limit 
heavy  metal  concentrations  in  soils.  For  this  purpose,  limit  values  have  been  defined  for 
heavy metals in soils  to which sludge is applied, and for the maximum annual quantities of 
such heavy metals which may be introduced into soil through sludge use in agriculture. 

The transposition and implementation of this Directive continues to be unproblematic, and no 
major  changes  took  place  since  the  last  reporting  period.  Interestingly,  there  is  a  wide 
variation  between  Member  States  in  national  limit  values  for  heavy  metals:  while  some 
Member  States  have  adopted  the  thresholds  of  the  Directive,  others  have  decided  to  enact 
much stricter limit values. 

The  analysis  of  the  data  reported  by  the  Member  States  on  sludge  produced  and  used  in 
agriculture shows that the aim to encourage the use of sludge in agriculture has been reached. 
Although  the  generation  of  sludge  was  slightly  reduced  (<  1%)  from  2007  to  2009,  the 
Member States report an increase of the use of sludge in agriculture by approximately 8% in 
the same period of time. 

In the first quarter of 2013, the Commission will carry out an ex-post evaluation of a number 
of waste stream Directives, including the Sewage Sludge Directive. 

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7. 

DIRECTIVE 94/62/EC ON PACKAGING AND PACKAGING WASTE 

The Packaging Directive aims to harmonise national measures in order to prevent or reduce 
the impact of packaging and packaging waste on the environment and to ensure the smooth 
functioning of the Internal Market. It contains provisions on prevention of packaging waste, 
on re-use of packaging and on recovery and recycling of packaging waste. The Directive sets 
recycling  and  recovery  targets,  obliges  Member  States  to  introduce  collection  schemes  for 
packaging waste and introduces minimum requirements which all packaging has to meet to be 
put on the EU market. Several Member States were granted transitional periods for achieving 
the recovery and recycling targets. 

In  general,  all  reporting  Member  States  have  properly  transposed  the  requirements  of  the 
Directive into their national laws. Based on the information provided by the Member States 
and the Eurostat statistics, it can be assumed that the overall implementation level continues 
to be satisfactory. Only two Member States have indicated that their national legislation has 
been modified during the reporting period. 

Between 2007 and 2009, the amount and composition of packaging waste generated remained 
quite  stable,  with  a  slight  increase  by  weight  in  2007  and  2008.  In  2009,  there  was  a 
significant  decrease  in  the  amount  of  packaging  waste  generated  below  the  2005  levels, 
although it is not possible to precisely indicate the reasons triggering this development. 

Greece, Ireland and Portugal have been granted transitional periods regarding the targets for 
treatment  of  packaging  waste  until  2011  because  of  the  large  number  of  small  islands,  the 
presence  of  rural  and  mountain  areas  and  the  low  level  of  packaging  consumption 
respectively.  In  addition,  Directive  2005/20/EC  and  the  Treaties  of  Accession  grant  a  later 
deadline to meet the targets for the countries which have acceded the European Union in 2004 
(the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,  Malta,  Poland, Slovenia, 
Slovakia) and 2007 (Romania and Bulgaria). 

The  total  recovery  and  recycling  rates  increased  significantly  compared  to  the  previous 
reporting period, mainly due to the introduction of packaging waste collection and treatment 
systems in the new Member States. Between 2007 and 2009, the total recovery and recycling 
rates underwent a slight but steady increase at EU-27 level. 

The vast majority of Member States attained the targets for overall recovery and recycling as 
well as the material-specific recycling targets, with some exceptions. In 2009, four Member 
States did not meet one or more of the defined targets. Some Member States did not achieve a 
target in one year but were able to reach it in the previous or subsequent year, which seems to 
suggest that no systematic structural deficits in waste management infrastructure exist in those 
Member  States.  However,  other  Member  States  consistently  failed  to  achieve  the  overall 
recovery/recycling  targets  or  material-specific  targets  over  the  reporting  period,  and  this 
problem needs to be addressed individually. 

The majority of Member States took measures to prevent the formation of packaging waste; 
nevertheless, encouraging the prevention of packaging waste and developing packaging re-use 
systems remains a continuous task for Member States. 

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All  reporting  Member  States  indicated  the  establishment  of  separate  collection  schemes  for 
packaging waste4. The systems differ as to their degree of efficiency and availability for the 
population and the cost for the citizen. Some of the Member States that acceded in 2004 have 
only  recently  started  to  put  relevant  infrastructure  in  place  via  pilot  projects  in  urban  areas. 
Member  States  implemented  a  number  of  different  initiatives  for  awareness-raising  of 
consumers  and  businesses  on  environmentally  sound  management  of  packaging  waste, 
including  separate  collection.  Where  such  systems  were  put  in  place,  the  performance  of 
separate collection (and subsequent quality of recycling) was significantly better. 

Implementation  and  practical  enforcement  of  the  requirements  set  by  the  Directive  vary 
considerably between the Member States, which is confirmed by the evaluation of statistical 
data. The Packaging Directive is also subject to the planned ex-post evaluation to be launched 
in 2013. 

8. 

DIRECTIVE 1999/31/EC ON THE LANDFILL OF WASTE 

The Landfill Directive is intended to prevent or reduce the adverse effects of the landfill of 
waste  on  the  environment  and  human  health.  It  sets  stringent  technical  requirements  for 
landfill sites, specific requirements for waste acceptance on the sites, and introduces landfill 
categories depending on the waste intended to be disposed of. The Directive obliges Member 
States to ensure that competent national authorities issue permits to operate the sites. The key 
provisions  include  targets  for  a  gradual  diversion  of  biodegradable  municipal  waste5  from 
landfills  in  order  to  reduce  methane6,  coupled  with  technical  requirements  for  capture  and 
treatment of landfill gas. 

Landfilling  has  always  been  the  least  desired  waste  management  option.  This  has  been 
confirmed  by  the  2008  WFD.  Many  Member  States  have  taken  measures  to  eliminate  it 
completely, and were very successful in this respect (landfilling rates for municipal waste had 
fallen  below  5%  in  Belgium,  Denmark,  Germany,  the  Netherlands,  Austria  and  Sweden). 
However, in many countries landfilling is a predominant (if not the only available) municipal 
waste  management  option  for.  Significant  efforts  need  to  be  made  by  the  latter  countries  to 
change the situation and drastically reduce landfilling. 

Member  States  reported  to  have  transposed  most  requirements  of  the  Directive  into  their 
national laws. All Member States reported having taken measures to reduce the landfilling of 
municipal  waste,  including  prevention  programmes,  and  to  have  adopted  national  strategies 
and measures to reduce the amount of biodegradable waste going to landfills. Data provided 
on the amount of biodegradable waste going to landfills show that the amount of such waste is 
continuously reduced: out of the 19 Member States for which data can be compared with that 
from the previous report, 11 were able to reduce the amount of biodegradable municipal waste 
going to landfills. 

4 

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Separate  collection  schemes for  packaging waste  are  understood  as  systems  set  up  to  provide  for  the 
return and/or collection of used packaging and/or packaging waste from the consumer, other final user, 
or from the waste stream in order to channel it to the most appropriate waste management alternatives 
(Art 7(1)(a) of the Packaging Directive). 
Biodegradable  waste  means  any  waste  that  is  capable  of  undergoing  anaerobic  or  aerobic 
decomposition,  such  as  food  and  garden  waste,  and  paper  and  paperboard  (Art  2(m)  of  the  Landfill 
Directive). 
Biodegradable waste decomposing in landfills generates methane, a powerful greenhouse gas around 20 
times more potent than CO2 in terms of greenhouse effect. 

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All  Member  States  have  defined  waste  acceptance  criteria  for  different  landfill  classes.  The 
technical requirements of the Directive (monitoring of leachate7, surface, groundwater and gas 
emissions)  are  generally  well  transposed  into  national  legislation.  However,  comprehensive 
data  on  practical  enforcement  of  these  requirements  by  landfill  operators  are  not  always 
available.  According  to  the  available  data,  at  the  end  of  the  reporting  period  2007  -  2009, 
there was still a considerable number of non-compliant landfills in operation, although their 
number  has  decreased  in  comparison  with  the  previous  report  (especially  in  the  case  of 
landfills for non-hazardous waste). The majority of Member States indicated that all landfills 
in  operation,  including  landfills  for  inert  waste,  complied  with  the  requirements  of  the 
Directive. Four Member States reported only a small share of compliant landfills, with the rest 
requiring upgrading and modernisation. 

The Commission will review the targets for diversion of biodegradable waste from landfills 
and  present  a  report  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  in  2014,  if  appropriate 
accompanied by a proposal. 

9. 

DIRECTIVE  2002/96/EC  ON  WASTE  ELECTRICAL  AND  ELECTRONIC  EQUIPMENT 
(WEEE DIRECTIVE) 

The WEEE Directive aims at promoting and optimising the collection, re-use, recycling and 
recovery of waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), ensuring a high level of 
environmental and health protection. It provides for the establishment of collection schemes 
for  the  return  of  old  devices  and  focuses  on  producer  responsibility  as  a  key  policy 
mechanism  for  reducing  quantities  of  WEEE  going  to  final  disposal.  The  Directive  aims  at 
improving product design with a view to preventing WEEE generation and increasing its re-
usability  and  recoverability,  and  provides  for  the  financing  of  systems  for  recovery  and 
treatment of WEEE by producers. It emphasises that WEEE should be carefully managed due 
to its often hazardous properties and its material value as resource. Therefore, the Directive 
defines  mandatory  targets  for  Member  States  concerning  the  collection  of  WEEE  from 
households and sets targets for re-use/recycling and recovery for different WEEE categories 
to  contribute  to  the  efficient  use  of  this  resource  (some  Member  States  were  granted 
transitional periods for achieving the targets).  

In  2008,  the  Commission  launched  a  recast  of  the  WEEE  Directive  in  order  to  adapt  the 
collection  targets  to  the  reality  of  the  different  Member  States,  to  strengthen  provisions 
against  illegal  shipments,  and  to  reduce  administrative  burdens.  The  new  WEEE  Directive 
was adopted on 4 July 20128.  

All Member States have transposed the relevant provisions of the WEEE Directive into their 
national laws. 

Based  on  the  national  implementation  reports  for  the  period  2007  to  2009  and  the  data 
submitted  on  target  achievement,  it  appears  that  the  level  of  compliance  with  the  Directive 
was in general satisfactory. In the reporting years 2007 and 2008, the EU-15 countries had to 
be compliant with the targets laid down in the Directive. In 2008, also Slovenia had to fulfil 

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Leachate  means  any  liquid  percolating  through  the  deposited  waste  and  emitted  from  or  contained 
within a landfill (see Art 2(i) of the Landfill Directive). 
Directive 2012/19/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, OJ L 197/38 of 24.07.2012 of 4 
July 2012 on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) 

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this requirement. The other Member States will have to show compliance from the reporting 
year  2009  onwards.  The  data  were  reported  by  all  Member  States.  Of  those  countries  that 
needed to be compliant in 2008, only Italy and Slovenia were significantly below the current 
collection target of 4kg9. A positive trend for collection and recovery is clearly visible from 
the yearly data reported up to now. 

All  reporting  Members  States  indicated  the  establishment  of  collection  systems  for  WEEE. 
Municipal collection was the dominant option chosen - private individual systems exist only 
in a few cases in addition to the collective ones. National systems differ in their complexity 
and efficiency, proximity and availability to inhabitants. In addition, the level of development 
differs from country to country and between rural and urban areas. 

An  increasing  amount  of  WEEE  was  collected,  re-used/recycled  and  recovered  over  this 
reporting  period  in  all  Member  States  for  which  data  was  available.  The  vast  majority  of 
Member  States  was  able  to  reach  the  collection  targets  foreseen  by  the  Directive10,  and  to 
reach the category-specific re-use/recycling and recovery targets. Where Member States failed 
to comply with the targets of the Directive, usually they did not comply with selected targets 
only (and not with the whole set of targets). In 2007 and 2008, the waste-stream specific re-
use/recycling targets were not met by up to three reporting Member States. 

10. 

CONCLUSIONS 

It  follows  from  Member  States’  reports  for  the  period  2007  to  2009  that  EU  legislation  on 
waste is to a large extent properly transposed into national legislation.  

According to the information provided by Member States and the available statistical figures, 
the  level  of  implementation  of  the  WEEE  and  Packaging  Directives  is  by  and  large 
satisfactory, with only a few Member States missing single targets. 

No  major  problems  and  deficits  could  be  identified  with  respect  to  the  implementation  of 
Directives related to the management of waste oils and sewage sludge. 

However,  for  other  Directives,  there  are  important  problems  with  practical  implementation 
and  enforcement.  This  conclusion  can  be  drawn  not  only  from  Member  States' 
implementation reports, but also from other sources of information such as Eurostat data, the 
Commission's  own  studies,  or  the  number  of  complaints  and  infringements  related  to  waste 
management. The level of enforcement varies considerably regarding the different Directives, 
with  the  Hazardous  Waste  Directive,  the  2006  WFD,  and  the  Landfill  Directive  raising 
biggest concerns. 

9 

10 

Member States shall ensure that by 31 December 2006 at the latest a rate of separate collection of at 
least four kilograms on average per inhabitant per year of WEEE from private households is achieved 
(Art 5(5) of the WEEE Directive). 
For the targets applicable to different categories of WEEE, see Art 7 (2) and Annex IA of the WEEE 
Directive,  as well  as  Figure  8  in  the  Annex  to  this  report  and  Table  3 in  the  specific  implementation 
report on the WEEE Directive at: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/reporting/index.htm. 

EN 

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With  respect  to  the  Hazardous  Waste  Directive,  doubts  in  terms  of  practical  enforcement 
concern  the  mixing  ban11  and  the  related  exemptions  defined  by  the  Directive12  and,  in  a 
broader  perspective, 
the  related 
establishments affected by inspections in some Member States. 

the  understanding  of  “periodic” 

inspections  and 

Regarding  the  Landfill  Directive,  whereas  its  strict  requirements  are  often  transposed  into 
national  law  and  measures  are  taken  to  reduce  biodegradable  waste  going  to  landfill,  the 
number  of  non-compliant  landfills  that  are  still  in  operation  remains  a  matter  of  concern. 
Another  serious  problem  is  the  overall  rate  of  landfilling,  whilst  some  Member  States  have 
shown that reduction to near zero rates is feasible, several others largely depend on this least 
favourable waste management option. This requires particular attention in view of the policy 
priority of the Roadmap for a Resource Efficient Europe to virtually eliminate landfilling. 

As  regards  the  2006  WFD,  available  statistics,  the  number  of  infringement  cases,  previous 
implementation  reports  and  the  Commission's  own  studies  show  a  continuous  deficit  in 
implementation  and  enforcement.  Concerns  remain  about  the  proper  implementation  of  the 
waste management hierarchy, even in its three-step version, with a high degree of dependence 
on landfilling leading to untapped recycling and recovery potentials, although some progress 
could  be  observed  during  this  reporting  period.  The  most  important  barriers  to  better 
implementation  on  Member  State  level  include  the  lack  of  commitment  and  resources  for 
implementation  control  and  enforcement,  in  combination  with  structural,  institutional  and 
constitutional  constraints13.  Tackling  these  obstacles,  as  well  as  adding  stronger  national 
inspections and better knowledge about waste management would bring major improvements. 

The waste management hierarchy has been modified in Directive 2008/98/EC on waste with a 
stronger emphasis on prevention, re-use and recycling. The introduction of new recycling and 
recovery targets into this Directive will be an important factor to drive towards better use of 
materials  contained  in  waste  instead  of  disposing  them.  At  the  same  time,  the  revised 
Directive  allows  Member  States  to  depart  from  the  hierarchy  where  this  is  justified  by  life-
cycle thinking on the overall impacts of the generation and management of waste. This will 
allow Member States to take a broader approach towards identifying and implementing waste 
management options that deliver the best outcome for the environment14.  

A recent study15 published by the Commission shows that full implementation of EU waste 
legislation  would  save  €72  bill ion  a  year,  increase  the  annual  turnover  of  the  EU  waste 
management and recycling sector by €42 bill ion and create over 400,000 jobs by 2020. Illegal 
waste operations or missing infrastructure in Member States are causing missed opportunities 
for  economic  growth  which  we  cannot  afford,  and  leading  to  environmental  threats.  It  is 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

Member States shall take the necessary measures to require that establishment and undertaking which 
dispose of, recover, collect or transport hazardous waste do not mix different categories of hazardous 
waste or mix hazardous waste with non-hazardous waste (Art 2(2) of the Hazardous Waste Directive).  
Note  that  the  provisions  on  mixing  ban  and  preconditions  for  possible  exemptions  are  considerably 
modified within Directive 2008/98/EC. 
See Commission study "Implementing EU legislation for green growth", final report of 29 November 
2011, 
at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/studies/pdf/study%2012%20FINAL%20REPORT.pdf. 
See Commission guidelines on how to apply life-cycle thinking-based approaches (e.g. LCA) to waste 
management at: http://lct.jrc.ec.europa.eu/assessment/publications. 
"Implementing  EU  legislation  for  green  growth",  final  report  of  29  November  2011,  available  at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/studies/pdf/study%2012%20FINAL%20REPORT.pdf. 

available 

EN 

10 

   EN 

 
                                                 
therefore  paramount  to  take  decisive  steps  to  bridge  the  implementation  gap  in  waste 
management and move towards a resource efficient society. 

EN 

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Figure 1. Overview of EU waste legislation – state of play as of July 2012 

Annex  

Waste Framework Directive (WFD) 

(Dir. 2008/98/EC) 

Waste Framework Directive 

Hazardous Waste Directive 

(Dir. 2006/12/EC) 

(Dir. 91/689/EEC) 

Waste Oils Directive 

(Dir. 75/439/EEC) 

Waste Shipment Regulation 

(Reg. (EC) 1013/2006) 

FRAMEWORK  

LEGISLATION 

Landfill Directive 

(Dir. 1999/31/EC) 

Incineration Directive 

(Dir. 2000/76/EC) 

IPPC Directive 

(Dir. 2008/1/EC) 

HORIZONTAL 

LEGISLATION 

Sewage 
Sludge  

(Dir. 
86/278/EC) 

Batteries and 
Accumulators 

(Dir. 
2006/66/EC) 

Packaging and 
Packaging 
Waste 

(Dir. 
94/62/EC) 

PCBs 

(Dir. 
96/59/EC) 

End-of-Life 
Vehicles 

(Dir. 
2000/53/EC) 

Mining Waste 

WEEE 

(Dir. 
2006/21/EU) 

(Dir. 
****/EU) 

RoHS 

(Dir. 
****/EU) 

under recast 

under recast 

WASTE STREAM 
SPECIFIC 
LEGISLATION 

EN 

12 

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Figure 2. Municipal waste generated by country in 1995, 2002, and 2009, sorted by 2009 level 
(kg per capita) 

Figure 3. Municipal waste landfilled, incinerated, recycled and composted in EU-27, 1995 to 
2009 

EN 

13 

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Figure 4. Treatment of municipal waste 2009 (source: DG ENV, based on EUROSTAT data) 

100%
100%

90%
90%

80%
80%

70%
70%

60%
60%

50%
50%

40%
40%

30%
30%

20%
20%

10%
10%

0%
0%

Bulgaria
Bulgaria

Romania
Romania

Lithuania
Lithuania
Malta
Malta

Latvia
Latvia

Greece
Greece
Czech Republic
Czech Republic
Cyprus
Cyprus

Slovakia
Slovakia

Poland
Poland

Estonia
Estonia

Hungary
Hungary

Ireland
Ireland

Portugal
Portugal

Slovenia
Slovenia

Spain
Spain

Finland
Finland
UK
UK

Italy
Italy

EU27
EU27

Luxembourg
Luxembourg
France
France

Belgium
Belgium

Denmark
Denmark

Netherlands
Netherlands
Austria
Austria

Sweden
Sweden

Germany
Germany

% Landfilled
% Landfilled

% Recovery (incineration, recycling, composting)
% Recovery (incineration, recycling, composting)

EN 

14 

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Figure 5. Waste generation for mineral and non-mineral waste 2008 (kg per capita) 

Figure 6. Hazardous waste generation 2004 to 2008 (kg per capita) 

EN 

15 

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Figure 7. Development of waste treatment in EU-27  by waste category 2004 to 2008 (1000 
tonnes) 

EN 

16 

   EN 

 
 
Figure  8.  Overview  of  the  targets  regarding  WEEE  sent  for  treatment  according  to  Article 
7(2) of the WEEE Directive 2002/96/EC 

treatment 

The 
include  at  a 
shall 
minimum  the  removal  of  all  fluids.  The 
Directive  provides  in  Article  7  specific 
recycling  and  recovery  targets,  which 
vary according to the specific categories 
of equipment.  

of  Reuse 

Rate 
Recycling  

and 

(by an average weight per 
appliance)  

Rate of Recovery  

(by an average weight per 
appliance) 

Electronic waste stream: 

Large Household Appliances  

Automatic Dispensers  

75%  

75%  

IT and telecommunications equipment  

65%  

Consumer Equipment  

Small household appliances  

Lighting Equipment  

Electrical  and  Electronic  tools  (with  the 
exception  of 
stationary 
industrial tools)  

large-scale 

Toys, leisure 

Monitoring and control instruments  

Gas discharge lamps  

65%  

70%  

70%  

70%  

70% 

70% 

80% 

80%  

80%  

75%  

75%  

50%  

50%  

50%  

50% 

50% 

EN 

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   EN