Twelve councils met the statutory target of 70% in 2024 to 2025
Recycling rates vary between councils in Wales(Image: WalesOnline/ Rob Browne)
Latest figures for Wales show that 10 of Wales’ 22 councils missed the statutory target set by the Welsh Government for recycling. Figures show that across Wales, 68.4% of waste in 2024-25 was recycled, when the target was 70%.
Twelve councils met the statutory target of 70%: Bridgend, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Conwy, Monmouthshire, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Pembrokeshire, Powys, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Swansea, and Vale of Glamorgan.
Ten did not meet the target: Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Isle of Anglesey, Merthyr Tydfil, Torfaen and Wrexham.
Recycling is something of a success story in Wales. In the late 1990s just 5% of waste was reused, recycled or composted. The recycling rate increased from 66.6% in 2023 -2024 and 68.4% in 2024 to 2025.
Welsh Government figures show that 20 of Wales’ councils reported an increase in their recycling rate compared with 2023-2024, although there is a variation between different councils, from 61.6% in Caerphilly to 73.5% in Pembrokeshire.
Both Caerphilly and Flintshire were below the previous target of 64% (set for 2019 to 2020).
The amount of waste each council in Wales reused, recycled or composted
Target is 70%
Caerphilly: 61.6%
Flintshire: 63.2%
Cardiff: 64%
Anglesey: 65%
Wrexham: 65.1%
Gwynedd: 65.3%
Merthyr Tydfil: 66.3%
Torfaen: 65.4%
Denbighshire: 68.6%
Blaenau Gwent: 68.9%
Ceredigion: 70.3%
Powys: 70.5%
Conwy: 70.7%
Rhondda Cynon Taf: 71%
Vale of Glamorgan: 71.1%
Carmarthenshire: 71.4%
Newport: 71.4%
Neath Port Talbot: 71.4%
Bridgend: 71.4%
Swansea: 71.7%
Monmouthshire: 72.3%
Pembrokeshire: 73.5%
The data released today by the Welsh Government shows that there have also been issues with the way recycling and reuse of wood has been overstated in statistics.
The report said that wood usually contributed around 4% to the overall national recycling rate, and that there was expected to be at least 1% less than that reported. The impact at individual council levels differed, it said, with some councils unaffected and some which could see their rate impacted by up to 5%. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here
People have been told they can continue to refer to the overall recycling trends and compare across years, but should note that the headline recycling rate is likely to be lower than published.
It also said it was not possible to revise the figures for 2024-2025 or for previous years.
The latest stats are the first to be published since new rules for workplaces were introduced which require all businesses, public and third sector workplaces and collectors to keep key recyclable materials separate.
The Welsh Government said an extra 8,187 tonnes of recyclable material had been collected from workplaces by councils – up 42% on the previous year. Residual waste collected from workplaces has also dropped by 15.8%.
Climate change minister Huw Irranca-Davies said: “We continue to build on Wales’ already world class recycling. This shows the huge shift in attitudes over the last few decades; recycling is now a part of who we are as a nation.
“We’ve backed our commitment with over £1bn of investment since devolution which has seen recycling rates increase exponentially ever since.
“I’m proud of every person in Wales who has played their part in getting us to where we are today – in our homes and now in our workplaces too. Thank you for joining this collective effort.”