In total, Germany generated 362.7 million tons of waste in 2024. According to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), this represented a decrease of 17.4 million tons, or 4.6 percent, compared to the previous year. Historically, the lowest total waste volume was recorded in 2009 at 359.4 million tons, while the highest volume occurred in 2018, reaching 417.2 million tons.
Several waste streams saw declines in 2024. Construction and demolition waste decreased by the largest margin at 8.1 percent compared to 2023 (a reduction of 16.0 million tons). Other waste, particularly from industrial and commercial activities, also dropped by 4.1 percent (1.9 million tons). Secondary waste, which had already undergone treatment in waste facilities, fell by 2.0 percent (1.1 million tons). In contrast, waste from the extraction and processing of minerals increased by 4.5 percent (+1.3 million tons). Meanwhile, municipal waste-waste from private households-saw a slight increase of 0.8 percent (+0.4 million tons).
Within the overall waste volume in 2024, construction and demolition waste again dominated, comprising 50 percent (182.8 million tons). This was followed by secondary waste, which accounted for 15 percent (56.1 million tons). Municipal waste made up 14 percent (49.3 million tons), while remaining waste accounted for 12 percent (45.1 million tons). Waste from mineral extraction and processing constituted the remaining 8 percent (29.5 million tons).
Regarding waste management, 296.2 million tons of waste were put into recovery in 2024. Of this, 249.9 million tons (69 percent) were recovered through material recycling, and 46.4 million tons (13 percent) were recovered through energy recovery. This results in a total recovery rate of 82 percent, which has remained stable since 2019. The remaining waste was then handled either by landfilling, which accounted for 16.3 percent (59.1 million tons), or thermal treatment, which took up 0.8 percent (2.9 million tons). Additionally, 1.2 percent (4.4 million tons) were subjected to other forms of treatment before final disposal.
