In 2023

Increased disposal of inert waste led to a 30.9% rise in overall waste production in the Autonomous Region of Madeira

According to an estimate provided by the Regional Directorate of Environment and Sea (DRAM), total waste production in the Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM) in 2023 amounted to approximately 312.6 thousand tonnes, reflecting an increase of 73.8 thousand tonnes (+30.9%) compared to the previous year. This growth is mainly attributed to a significant rise in the deposition of inert waste on the island of Madeira (+119.3%). Even when excluding this type of waste across the archipelago, the overall waste production in the Region still shows an increase of 0.8%.

A considerable portion of total waste production is linked to waste sent to the Meia Serra Waste Treatment Plant (WTP), which reached about 139.5 thousand tonnes, marking a slight decline of 0.7% compared to the previous year. This reduction was driven by decreases in energy recovery through incineration (-5.7%) and hospital waste management (-24.2%). The increases observed in sanitary landfill disposal (+42.8%) and in organic waste valorisation (+112.1%) were iinsufficient to offset these declines.

On the other hand, the amount of waste sent for recycling or recovery outside the ARM reached around 35.9 thousand tonnes, up 9.1% from the previous year. Noteworthy increases were observed in the recycling of tyres (+51.9%), plastic and metal packaging (+23.6%) and cardboard (+16.2%). However, significant reductions were seen in the recycling of batteries (-30.6%) and paper (-12.7%).

Including composting carried out at the WTP, the total amount of recycled waste in the ARM reached 10.3 thousand tonnes, marking a substantial increase of 60.8% over 2022. Noteworthy changes were seen in composting (+109.8%) and the valorisation of wood chips (+34.3%) and plastic (+79.3%). In contrast, tyre recycling (-34.9%) and the recycling of construction and demolition waste (-22.0%) experienced declines. 

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