The data was complied by National Statistics for the Welsh Assembly's Waste Strategy Unit.
Carwyn Jones, Wales' environment minister, said: “With the support of local authorities and communities, the Welsh Assembly Waste Strategy is really tackling our number one environmental problem, that is, the unsustainable practice of sending our rubbish to holes in the ground.”
Mr Jones went on to comment on the improvement that Wales has made over a long term period. He said: “We have quadrupled the amount of material we recycle or compost since the establishment of the National Assembly for Wales.” Wales had a recycling rate of under 4.5% in 1999, when the Welsh assembly was created.
According to the report, the amount of municipal waste which was recycled or composted increased by 41% from 226,000 tonnes in 2002/03 to 319,000 tonnes in 2003/04. Composting alone increased from 71,000 tonnes to 111,000 tonnes, an increase of 56%.
Looking to the future Mr Jones said: “Building on our success will mean changes to the way we manage our rubbish in Wales. To achieve this while keeping council tax down, local authorities may have to reduce the frequency of rubbish collections to concentrate on recycling collections.”
The report also covered figures on the number of abandoned vehicles recycled for the first time. The statistics stated that 12,000 tonnes of abandoned vehicles were recycled in 2003/04.
Wales' Waste Strategy targets required Wales to recycle and compost at least 15% of its waste in 2003/04. Wales must now reach 25% by 2006/07.
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