MILAN – Today, 16% of people in Italy recycle and separate their waste, thereby feeding into the virtuous recycling and re-use industry, also known as the “circular economy”. This is part of a new Green Economy, which sees 150,000 people involved in the recycling and redesign of products. It is this percentage of the population that make up the so-called “Comuni Ricicloni”, or “recycling municipalities”, which are those authorities that have distinguished themselves in the area of separate waste collection. In 2015 there are 1,520 such municipalities, a number that has risen by 192 since 2014. These statistics have been published to mark the 22nd annual “Comuni Ricicloni” awards, taking place in Rome.
Distribution
These Comuni Ricicloni are primarily distributed across north-east Italy (the regions Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Trentino Alto Adige boast the highest concentration of Comuni Ricicloni), with significant new growth in the number of towns across central-southern Italy, which has seen these virtuous municipalities increase from 18% to 25% of the national total. There has been a particularly significant increase in Le Marche and in Campania. The first developments within this year's classifications are, in fact, the new additions, the new “Ricicloni”, or recyclers, the majority of which are from Le Marche and Campania.
Parma is the first large regional capital to become a “riciclone”, whilst Milan has been noted as the first city with over one million inhabitants to have surpassed the threshold of 50% recycled waste. More specifically, the classifications of the Comuni Ricicloni 2015 awards (those municipalities that have achieved the statutory target of 65% separated waste collection) covers all regions that have at least one virtuous municipality and rewards the good management of waste collection services and the launching of recycling services.
Northern, central and southern Italy
With the exception of Triveneto, Italy’s northern regions no longer stand out: Lombardy and Piedmont are comfortably surpassed by Le Marche and Campania, closely followed by Umbria. The majority of municipalities in Campania are now approaching the threshold of 65%, with almost the only exception being the regional capital. Overall, the south continues to beat the north thanks to Campania, which has increased the number of virtuous municipalities by 15.3%, whilst central Italy remains in a stable position thanks to Le Marche, which has increased again by 9.5%. As such, one “Comune Riciclone” in four is located in central-southern Italy.
