Maastricht

The city of Maastricht has over 122,500 residents and is located in the south of the Netherlands, in the Euregio Meuse-Rhine, where the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany meet. Maastricht is well known for the Maastricht Treaty of 1992, which instituted the euro as the common European currency. In terms of waste collection, Maastricht is amongst the leading Dutch municipalities. As much as 74% of the city’s household waste is reused or recycled*. A resident of Maastricht annually disposes of only 110 kilograms of residual household waste that has to be burnt, 310 kilograms is reused or recycled*.

These positive results are a consequence of a very consistent waste policy implemented in 2001, which is based on two pillars: 1. Differentiated tariffs – diftar – for household waste (both waste bags and bulky waste). 2. An extensive network of 57 recycling points, easily accessible for residents (neighbourhood facilities). These recycling points have underground containers for the disposal of paper, glass, and PMD waste (plastic packaging, metallic packaging, and drinks cartons). The municipality of Maastricht has a waste policy department and a municipal waste collection service.

*2017 data