Malta has reduced household mixed waste by more than 30% over the past five years, while recording record levels of organic and recyclable waste separation, Environment Minister Miriam Dalli and WasteServ CEO Richard Bilocca said, hailing what they described as a major shift in public behaviour and waste-management performance.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday at the ECOHIVE Complex in Naxxar, Dalli and Bilocca said that Malta’s Long-Term Waste Management Plan is delivering tangible results, with both households and businesses increasingly separating waste and diverting it away from landfill.

Bilocca said the most significant achievement was the reduction in domestic black-bag waste.

“Household mixed waste has dropped by around 30%. The Maltese public is generating far less waste in the black bag,” he said.

Organic waste separation has continued to rise, reaching over 30,000 tonnes in 2025, and this waste is being converted into renewable energy and compost, Bilocca said.

Bilocca explained that before the waste reforms, around 40% of black-bag waste consisted of organic material, however, by 2025, this figure had fallen to about 20%.

“This shows how much more organic waste is now being separated correctly,” he said.

In 2025, all organic waste collected from households and businesses was converted into 8.5 GWh of electricity, enough to power around 1,200 homes for a year, and into compost for the agricultural sector.

Bilocca said that recyclable outputs also reached record levels, exceeding 23.5 million kgs, including materials such as glass, gypsum and wood.

The commercial sector also showed significant improvement, where Bilocca said that 2025 marked the first year in which mixed waste from businesses decreased, while recyclable and organic waste increased sharply.

He said that organic waste from the commercial sector rose from just 263,900 kgs in 2022 to approximately 6.5 million kgs in 2025, while recyclable waste increased from just over one million kgs to nearly four million kgs.

“This sector is now cooperating strongly in organic and recyclable separation,” he said.

Bilocca added that over the past five years, Malta has diverted approximately 412 million kgs of waste away from landfills and back into the circular economy, the equivalent of around 41 billion plastic water bottles.

“These numbers improve Malta’s performance in meeting EU requirements and, more importantly, leave a better environment for future generations,” he said.

“Over recent years, WasteServ has made significant investments in its workforce and in modern, efficient waste management infrastructure. The results we are seeing today reflect not only these investments, but also the growing cooperation of households and businesses. By working together, we are making significant progress in reducing waste and moving Malta closer to a circular economy,” Bilocca said.

Bilocca said that waste-to-energy infrastructure will play a critical role in ensuring that non-recyclable waste is converted into green energy rather than sent to landfills.

‘We do not want to keep expanding landfills,’ Minister says

Minister Miriam Dalli said the results confirm that Malta is moving away from a landfill-dependent model.

“The most important thing is that we can honour our commitment not to keep expanding landfills or taking up agricultural land,” she said.

Dalli said the achievements were the result of discipline, policy direction and cooperation from families and businesses.

“These results are proof of the country’s progress in waste management and environmental protection,” Dalli said.

She noted that around 412 million kgs of waste have been transformed into valuable resources.

“When I see these results, they show that the strategy we are following is solid and is giving us the results we want,” she said.

Dalli said recyclable waste had reached record levels and organic waste conversion had provided renewable energy for thousands of households.

“These results are the fruit of the investments we made and the consistent and serious plan for waste management. They bring environmental benefits and improve quality of life,” she said, describeing the shift as a collective national effort.

“When we work together, we can bring real change and move Malta closer to a circular economy,” she said.

Dalli also pointed to former landfill sites that have been transformed into open public spaces, such as Wied Fulija and Qortin in Gozo, while the Marsaskala waste facility is set to be converted into a family park.

“Our vision is that what was once considered waste is now seen as a resource,” she said.