Imperial College London: Global waste to hit nearly 4 billion tonnes a year by 2050, World Bank Group report warns
- 2 days ago
- 1 min read
Experts from Imperial, working independently through Imperial Consultants, have helped deliver a major new global analysis of rising waste, climate emissions and failures in basic rubbish collection.
The world is on track to generate 3.86 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste a year by 2050, up from 2.56 billion tonnes in 2022, according to What a Waste 3.0, a new report from the World Bank Group. Drawing on data from 217 countries and economies, and 262 cities, the report shows that waste generation is rising faster than many cities and countries can manage it, with growing consequences for public health, climate emissions and urban development.
“Waste is often treated as a local sanitation issue, but the evidence shows it is also a global climate, public health and development challenge,” said Dr Ed Cook, a research associate in waste management in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and the report’s lead author. “What this report shows very clearly is that waste generation is rising faster than municipal systems can cope with. At the same time, it also shows that better outcomes are possible if countries invest in collection, controlled management and more ambitious waste prevention and recovery.”
