Waste management and recycling challenges in Italy

Waste management and recycling efficiency are key focus areas in Italy. Research indicates that packaging accounts for 36% of urban solid waste. While the environmental impact of food production—such as greenhouse gas emissions from meat—often outweighs the impact of packaging itself, consumers can reduce their footprint by choosing lightweight, recycled, or compostable materials and being wary of greenwashing marketing claims.

Separately, a study by Erion Energy, Erion WEEE, and the Politecnico di Milano highlights the issue of small electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and batteries being incorrectly disposed of in unsorted waste. On average, Italians discard nearly 2 kg of small electronic waste and 0.12 kg of batteries in general waste annually.

Implementing advanced sorting technologies, including robotics and AI, could help recover these materials. However, upgrading the 60 main Italian treatment plants with such technology could cost up to 114 million euros. Improving proper disposal habits could significantly increase collection rates for small WEEE from 17% to 37% and for portable batteries from 25% to 52%.