Sub-categories

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Headline data

(a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment
Year Value Units Series
2021 35864675.52 Tons Hazardous waste generated per capita

Source:

Geographical Area:

Unit of Measurement:

Footnote:

This table provides metadata for the actual indicator available from United States statistics closest to the corresponding global SDG indicator. Please note that even when the global SDG indicator is fully available from American statistics, this table should be consulted for information on national methodology and other American-specific metadata information.

Indicator

(a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment
Organisation

U.S Enviromental Protection Agency/Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery/Program Implementation and Information Division/ Information Collection and Analysis Branch
Definition and concepts

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in partnership with the States, biennially collects information regarding the generation, management, and final disposition of hazardous wastes regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA), as amended.

The term “RCRA hazardous waste” refers to solid waste assigned a Federal Hazardous Waste Code and regulated by RCRA. Some States elect to regulate wastes not specifically regulated by EPA; these wastes are assigned State Hazardous Waste Codes. In regard to the Biennial Report, EPA has asked the States to exclude data for waste with only State Hazardous Waste Codes (i.e., the waste description does not include any Federal Hazardous Waste Codes).
Unit of measure

Percent
Data sources

https://rcrapublic.epa.gov/rcrainfoweb/action/modules/br/summary/view https://usafacts.org/state-of-the-union-2022/population/
Data providers

Debbie Goodwin
Comment and limitations

Data source: Biennial Report
Method of computation

The total hazardous waste generated in the reporting year was divided by the population of the U.S. for that reporting year. Like wise each treatment method was divided by the total quantity of waste treated to get the percent for each treatment method.

This table provides information on metadata for SDG indicators as defined by the UN Statistical Commission. Complete global metadata is provided by the UN Statistics Division.

Indicator

Indicator 12.4.2: (a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment
Target

Target 12.4: By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment
Organisation

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
Definition and concepts

Definitions:

The indicator includes hazardous generated, hazardous waste generated by type (including e-waste as a sub-indicator) and the proportion of hazardous waste treated.

Hazardous waste is waste with properties capable of having a harmful effect on human health or the environment and is regulated and controlled by law.

Hazardous waste generated: refers to the quantity of hazardous waste generated within the country during the reported year, prior to any activity such as collection, preparation for reuse, treatment, recovery, including recycling, or export, no matter the destination of this waste.

Hazardous waste generated by type, including e-waste: A breakdown of hazardous waste generated by key type of waste, including e-waste.

Municipal waste: Municipal solid waste (MSW) includes waste originating from households, commerce and trade, small businesses, office buildings and institutions (schools, hospitals, government buildings). It also includes bulky waste (e.g., old furniture, mattresses) and waste from selected municipal services, e.g. waste from parks and gardens maintenance, waste from street cleaning services (street sweepings, litter containers content, market cleansing waste), if managed as waste.

E-waste: Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to all items of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and its parts that have been discarded by its owner as waste without the intent of re-use.

Hazardous waste treated: Hazardous waste treated during reporting year, per each type of treatment (recycling, incineration with/without energy recovery, landfilling or other), including exports and excluding imports.

Concepts:

Hazardous waste is waste with properties that make it hazardous or capable of having a harmful effect on human health or the environment. Hazardous waste is generated from many sources, ranging from industrial manufacturing process waste to domestic items such as batteries and may come in many forms, including liquids, solids, gases and sludge. They can be discarded as commercial products, like cleaning fluids or pesticides or the by-products of manufacturing processes, from Basel Convention (Article 1, paragraph 1(a)). Waste listed in Annex VIII of the Basel Convention is presumed to be hazardous, while waste listed in Annex IX is presumed not to be hazardous. For the purpose of this indicator, due to comparability reasons, additional waste considered hazardous as per national definitions, as provided by the Basel Convention under Article 1, paragraph 1(b), are excluded.

Hazardous waste generated refers to the quantity of hazardous waste (as per the definition above) that is generated within the country during the reported year, prior to any activity such as collection, preparation for reuse, treatment, recovery, including recycling, or export, no matter the destination of this waste. For waste that are not covered under the above definition, but are defined as, or are considered to be hazardous waste by national definitions and are included in the “hazardous waste generated” amount, a specific note should be added specifying the additional types/streams of hazardous waste included as well as their quantities.

“Waste treated” and “type of treatment” are not defined in the Basel Convention. In this context, “treatment” will include all operations included under Annex IV of the Basel Convention, namely “Disposal” operations D1 to D15 and “Recovery” operations R1 to R13. This is also linked to the definitions of “Recycling, Incineration, Incineration with energy recovery, Landfilling and other types of treatment or disposal”.

A full methodology for this indicator is available in the document entitled, “Global Chemicals and Waste Indicator Review Document” (UNEP, 2021).
Unit of measure

Tonnes, Kilograms (Kg), kilograms per constant United States dollars, Percent (%)
Data sources

Data provided by national governments, including National Statistical Offices (NSOs), Ministries of Environment and other relevant organisations.
Data providers

National Statistical Systems and relevant ministries.

Comment and limitations

Data on hazardous waste generation and treatment may be scarce in some countries, due to a series of factors, such as lack of, or insufficient, policies and regulations on management and/or reporting; limited human, financial and technical resources within government agencies, lack of clear disclosure and reporting rules and requirements, and unwillingness of generators and public officials in certain countries to disclose the quantities of hazardous waste generated. Some countries may have the data and monitoring systems needed to report, while for others there is a need for training and capacity development to enhance data collection, validation and reporting capacity.

Limitations in terms of usable data for calculating the indicator(s) may arise due to differences in understanding of the terminology used in the indicator or differences between these definitions and those included in national legislation. This can lead to differences in reported values and difficulties in cross-checking of reported data. For example, by national legislation, countries may define additional types of waste to be considered as hazardous beyond the waste streams defined in the Basel Convention.
Method of computation

A full methodology for this indicator is available in the document entitled, “Global Chemicals and Waste Indicator Review Document” (UNEP, 2021).

For the purpose of this indicator, Hazardous waste generated should include collected hazardous waste (either by specialized companies or by municipal services), hazardous waste which is given by the generator directly to the treatment or disposal facility, as well as an estimation of the hazardous waste which is unaccounted for. Generated hazardous waste includes exported hazardous waste and excludes imports of hazardous waste.

H a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   g e n e r a t e d = h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   c o l l e c t e d   t h r o u g h   m u n i c i p a l   s e r v i c e s   o r   p r i v a t e   c o m p a n i e s   + h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   g i v e n   b y   g e n e r a t o r   t o   t r e a t m e n t   o r   d i s p o s a l   f a c i l i t i e s + e s t i m a t i o n   o f h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   u n a c c o u n t e d   f o r

The estimation of hazardous waste unaccounted for is the most difficult aspect of this methodology as it requires local-level knowledge and estimation. This aspect of the indicator is particularly important as hazardous waste that is unaccounted for is typically also untreated and has a high potential to impact the environment.

The proportion of hazardous waste treated is presented below. Note that the total quantity of hazardous waste treated during the reported year in the reporting country is calculated by adding quantities of hazardous waste treated, per type of treatment (recycling, incineration with/without energy recovery, landfilling or other), including exports and excluding imports. This matches with the definition of recycling in SDG indicator 12.5.1.

P r o p o r t i o n   o f   h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   t r e a t e d %

= Q u a n t i t y   o f   h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   t r e a t e d d u r i n g   t h e   r e p o r t i n g   y e a r * × 100 T o t a l   q u a n t i t y   o f   h a z a r d o u s   w a s t e   g e n e r a t e d   d u r i n g   t h e   r e p o r t i n g   y e a r

* Hazardous waste treated in the country plus materials exported for treatment minus the materials imported for treatment.

Metadata update

2024-07-29
International organisations(s) responsible for global monitoring

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
Related indicators

11.6.1, 12.5.1, 14.1.1
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