Korea outpaces Japan in trash recycling, joint study shows

The cover page of the first-ever joint comparative waste statistics report published by Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research and Japan’s National Institute for Environmental Studies is shown in this handout photo. Courtesy of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment

Korea and Japan published Monday a joint study establishing the first unified framework to directly compare the two nations' waste management and recycling systems.

The initiative, led by Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research and Japan’s National Institute for Environmental Studies, required researchers to harmonize vastly different municipal definitions, tracking mechanisms and industrial classification systems.

The underlying numbers reveal a stark divergence in how the neighboring countries handle their consumer waste.

According to the report, Korea generated approximately 22 million tons of municipal household waste in 2023 — about half of the 39 million tons produced by Japan. Yet, when it comes to keeping that trash out of landfills and incinerators, Korea recycled roughly 70 percent of its household waste, a rate nearly three and a half times higher than Japan’s 20 percent.

The data underscores Korea's aggressive, decade-long push toward a circular economy, driven by mandatory food waste recycling and strict volume-based disposal fees. However, the report also highlights a growing crisis of trash volume. Korea’s municipal waste generation has climbed steadily over the last decade, rising from 18 million tons in 2014 to 22 million tons today. To keep pace, the country has built a massive infrastructure network, operating 404 active incineration facilities capable of burning 41,000 tons of trash every day.

Environmental officials from both countries view the study as a blueprint for cross-border administrative and industrial cooperation. By tracking the flow of materials like construction debris, medical waste and hazardous materials, policymakers hope to refine domestic environmental regulations and assist international corporations trying to navigate regional supply chains.

"This is an invaluable foundational text," said Park Jung-min, director of environmental resources research at the National Institute of Environmental Research. "We intend to expand this international data network beyond Seoul and Tokyo, bringing more nations into a shared circular economy model."

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.