Northern Ireland local authority collected municipal waste management statistics released

Provisional Northern Ireland local authority collected municipal waste management statistics for July to September 2022 have been published today by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).

This statistical report is updated quarterly and contains provisional information on key measurements of local authority collected (LAC) municipal waste for councils and waste management groups in Northern Ireland. 

Download the report.

The key points are:

• Northern Ireland’s councils collected 249,575 tonnes of waste during July to September 2022, a 9.5% decrease compared to July to September 2021.
• During July to September 2022, 51.5% of waste collected by councils was sent for recycling, 0.8 percentage points lower than the recycling rate for July to September 2021.
• The landfill rate for waste collected by councils was 22.8% in July to September 2022, a fall from both 71.8% in July to September 2006 and 23.7% recorded during July to September 2021.
• Almost a quarter (24.4%) of waste arisings were sent for energy recovery in July to September 2022 which was higher than the 21.7% reported in July to September 2021. In the longer term, energy recovery rates have increased from 0.1% recorded during July to September 2009.  
• Household waste accounted for 86.5% of all Local Authority collected (LAC) waste during this period.
• The recycling rate for household waste was 52.9% in July to September 2022, similar to the rate recorded during the same quarter of 2021. The landfill rate for household waste was 21.8%, which was lower than the landfill rate of 23.5% recorded in July to September 2021.

Notes to editors: 

1. This is the latest in a regular series of quarterly Northern Ireland local authority collected municipal waste management statistics reports and is the second report for the 2022/23 financial year covering the period July to September 2022. Current and previous reports dating back to 2009/10 can be accessed from the DAERA website. The series will continue to be updated on a quarterly basis.

2. All figures are provisional until the final end-year validation has been completed. An annual report with fully validated figures for 2022/23 is scheduled for November 2023.

3. The data in this report are based on returns made to WasteDataFlow, which is a web based system, used by all UK local authorities to report LAC municipal waste.

4. There are four main sections in the report which covers local authority collected municipal waste and, where appropriate, household waste: waste arisings; recycling; energy recovery; and landfill.

5. With the reform of local government in Northern Ireland 8 of the 11 district councils were split into two Waste Management Groups with 3 unaffiliated to any group as follows:

arc21: Antrim & Newtownabbey; Ards & North Down, Belfast, Lisburn & Castlereagh; Mid & East Antrim; Newry, Mourne & Down.

North West Regional Waste Management Group: Causeway Coast & Glens; Derry City & Strabane.

6. These statistics are released according to the Statement of Compliance with the Pre-release access to Official Statistics Order (NI) 2009. National Statistics meet the highest standards of trustworthiness, quality and public value. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.

7. All media queries should be directed to the DAERA Press Office.

8. Follow DAERA on Twitter  and Facebook.

9. The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service for media enquiries only between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.

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