Worldwide arisings of municipal solid waste will double by 2025, reaching 2.6 billion tonnes per year, according to a new study released by the Worldwatch Institute in Washington, D.C. The most important factors driving the anticipated growth would be the increasing standard of living and advancing urbanisation.
At present, only around a quarter of household waste is recycled, composted or treated through anaerobic digestion, according to the report. However, it had been possible to boost recycling rates significantly in recent years, especially in industrialised countries.
The country with the highest waste arisings is the United States at 621,000 tonnes per day. China produces 100,000 tonnes per day less. France was still among the top ten municipal waste producing-nations, although it generates only around a seventh of the volume produced by the US, according to Worldwatch.