Growing share of reused and recycled wood in Italy
More than 1.6 million materials recovered for a second life by the Rilegno Consortium in 2023, representing 64.9 per cent of the wood released for consumption
2' min read
2' min read
The wood recycling and reuse system is still growing in Italy, which on this front exceeds, once again positively, the European averages, with 1.6 million tonnes of wood sent for recycling by Rilegno, 46.10% of which consists of packaging, for a recycling percentage of 64.92% compared to the 3.3 million tonnes released for consumption. More than double the target of 30% by 2030 also reiterated by the new European Regulation (Ppwr) and more than the 62.7% recorded last year, even the absolute volumes are slightly lower (1.7 million tonnes in 2023 and 3.4 million tonnes released for consumption.
This is the highest result in the last eight years, with a trend that sees a clear increase compared to 60% in 2016. The reuse sector, in particular, continues to grow, with 909,210 tonnes of pallets reclaimed and returned for consumption, amounting to more than 70 million units.
At territorial level, in re-use, Lombardy excelled with 264,860 tonnes (29% of the total), followed by Piedmont (133,754), Veneto (110,849), Emilia Romagna (108,883) and Tuscany (101,364).
Ninety-five per cent of the recycled wood material is used for the creation of chipboard, which is of primary importance for the furniture industry, and other products such as pallet blocks, wood cement blocks for construction, bio-filters, pulp for paper mills and compost. The economic impact generated can be estimated at around 3.1 billion, over 10,000 jobs and a saving in CO2 emissions of 1.8 million tonnes.
"The figure to be underlined is that of reuse, on which Rilegno has always focused, which has grown to over 900,000 tonnes. Such an important result, achieved in a market as large as the Italian one, which is second only to the German one, has a decisive impact in relation to the market placed on the market with positive environmental and economic consequences," comments Nicola Semeraro, president of Rilegno, which manages a supply chain based on 1,957 consortium members, 384 collection platforms widespread throughout the territory and 16 recycling plants.
