Poland on the way to SDGs. Report 2025

In pursuit of sustainable consumption and production, it is important to manage natural resources rationally. In Poland, in the years 2015–2024, the annual average consumption of materials throughout the whole value chain (referred to as the material footprint) ranged from 15 to 17 tonnes per capita per year. It was slightly lower for the whole EU, namely 14–15 tonnes per capita. However, the material footprint varies significantly across EU states, ranging from 10 tonnes in Spain to as much as 43 tonnes in Finland, which results from a variety of factors, including differences in the structure of their economies. Countries where industry accounts for a large share of their GDP tend to have higher resources consumption than those whose economies are based mainly on services.

One of the reasons behind the high consumption of raw materials in Poland is the low level of their reuse. In 2024, secondary raw materials accounted for less than 8% of all materials used, which was less than in 2015 (12%). As in the case of the material footprint, the extent to which raw materials are reused in EU countries also varies: in Romania it is only 1%, while in the Netherlands it is as high as 33%. In 2024, Poland ranked 15th in the EU in terms of the amount of materials reintroduced into circulation, falling from the 5th place in 2015.

Despite the decreasing use of secondary raw materials, resource efficiency in Poland is improving. This is the result of faster GDP growth compared to domestic material consumption (in 2015‒2023), which means that the Polish economy is becoming less dependent on the use of resources. Furthermore, in 2024, along with GDP growth, a slight decrease in domestic material consumption was observed, which indicates an absolute decoupling of economic growth from the use of resources. Resource productivity in the Polish economy is currently 40% higher than in 2015 (it increased from 0.7 EUR/kg to 1.0 EUR/kg). Nevertheless, it remains significantly lower than the EU average (by 36% in 2024). Poland ranks 21st in the EU in terms of material efficiency, advancing by two places compared to 2015.

The consumption footprint provides full information on whether national consumption and production patterns are sustainable. It indicates the extent to which consumption and production systems operate within the limits of the available resources. Since 2010, the consumption footprint in Poland has increased by 21% and by 6% in the EU on average. per capita, it is still lower in Poland than in the EU on average (0.86 points compared to 0.93 points in 2023). The same applies to transgressions of planetary boundaries, which are assessed, among others, in relation to climate change, resources consumption, pollutant emissions, toxicity to human health and changes in land use, also caused by excessive consumption and production. In Poland, transgressions of planetary boundaries are slightly below the EU average, although their number is increasing systematically. Due to excessive consumption, planetary boundaries are transgressed on average 3 times a year in Poland and 3.3 times in the EU.

The aim of sustainable consumption and production is to use raw materials rationally and reduce the production of waste. In 2014–2022, the average inhabitant of Poland generated between 4.5 and 4.8 tonnes of waste annually, which is less than an average resident of the EU (between 4.8 and 5.2 tonnes). In EU countries, the amount of waste produced per person ranges from 1.3 tonnes in Lithuania to 19.9 tonnes in Finland, which results, among others, from different economic structures. The mining and quarrying industry (e.g. in Finland, Romania, Sweden), and the construction and demolition sector (e.g. in Luxembourg) are particularly responsible for the large amount of major mineral waste and its dominant share in the total waste.

In Poland, the major mineral waste from the mining and quarrying activities, and construction and demolition industries accounts for slightly more than half of all waste, while in the whole EU, its share exceeds 60%. In 2014–2022, the Polish mining and quarrying activities, and construction and demolition industries generated annually an average of 2.5-2.7 tonnes of major mineral waste per person. The EU average during this period was approximately 3.1-3.4 tonnes. By contrast, Poland generated more other waste per capita (2.0-2.1 tonnes) than the EU average (1.7-1.8 tonnes).

Poles generate less municipal waste (per capita) than many other of their EU counterparts, although the amount is steadily increasing (from 286 kg in 2015 to 367 kg in 2023). Likewise, food waste is lower in Poland (127 kg per capita) than in the EU on average (130 kg), but the amount of wasted products is growing in Poland by the year.

The lack of progress in reducing waste in the Polish economy is accompanied by a decline in recycling. The amount of recycled waste per capita dropped by a half, from 2.4 tonnes in 2014 to 1.2 tonnes in 2022. The situation is different in the EU, where the amount of waste recycled per capita increased from 1.7 tonnes to 1.8 tonnes during this period.