French environmental services concern Veolia Environnement saw world-wide revenues from waste management activities in the first quarter of 2012 inch only €7m from the adjusted prior-year figure to €2.236bn. In Germany and in the UK, the division's turnover came in 6.3 per cent lower than it had been a year earlier, according to a quarterly statement released in Paris on Friday.
The decrease stemmed from a moderate drop-off in processed waste volumes and lower prices for secondary raw materials. The price trends and the difficult macro-economic environment were also responsible for a decline in the division's operating profit compared with the first quarter of 2011, according to Veolia.