The issue of waste is central and fundamental to the overall achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the UN and adopted by the United Nations. The quantity and nature of waste generated, and the way we manage it, are cross-cutting indicators of our ability to develop sustainably. Yet there are few specific targets for waste. SDG 11 entrusts waste management to local authorities. ODD 12 integrates it under the angle of reducing food waste, responsible production and recycling. The question of waste is explicitly addressed in the Agenda 2030 through the following two perspectives:
- Our ability to reduce our needs, cut waste and produce raw materials from recycling (SDG12): action by governments is required for the transition to sobriety coupled with a circular economy intensifying the various stages of material use.
- Cities and communities ability(ODD 11) to collect and treat waste, pollution (air, water and soil) and blockages in urban drainage, increasing the risk of flooding and disease transmission.
the sector suffers from a lack of specific indicators and targets recognizing the cross-cutting impact of waste on all the SDGs.
- The facts: 2.1 billion tonnes/year of waste are currently generated, which 0.8 billion tonnes/year are unmanaged. If we continue with the trends and practices of the last 20 years, we will have 3.8 billion tonnes/year of waste generated by 2050, including 1.6 billion tonnes/year unmanaged (Global Waste Management Outlook 2024). The consumption of virgin material, known as the material footprint, exceeds the planet’s capacity (estimated at 12 t/pers/year, with a planetary balance of around 6 t/pers/year).
- The ambition : The transition to a scenario where circularity is central, with all waste managed well, would enable us to halve negative externalities on climate change, ecosystems and health, and to release recycling gains exceeding these negative externalities (Global Waste Management Outlook 2024).
- The need: to take this transition towards sound management of all waste and a more sober, circular economy to the highest level of international bodies, in order to ensure that all international frameworks contributing to this transition evolve.
