"In just one week, the publication of the Dispatch has already made it possible to object to the entry of 48 thousand tons of waste from other countries," said a MAAC source, also announcing that the Waste Management Fee (TGR) for landfills in Portugal will double next summer from 11 to "22 Euros per ton".

According to MAAC, the decision to raise the TGR values intends to “discourage the forwarding of national and other waste to landfills, complemented by a review of the assessment rates for notification procedures for transferring waste, for import or export.

The rise of the TGR is part of the Landfill Action Plan 2020, an MAAC initiative to “address concerns about landfills” and whose action will be concerted and articulated among the various entities with powers of inspection, licensing and monitoring, namely the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), General Inspection of the Sea, Environment and Spatial Planning (IGAMAOT) and the five Commissions for Coordination and Regional Development (CCDR).

Data from the Ministry of the Environment for 2018 indicate that waste from foreign countries for disposal in Portugal represented 6 percent of the total industrial waste disposed of in Portugal.

Although this garbage from abroad represents 6 percent, MAAC reveals that since 2017 there has been an “increase” in the entry of this waste, with the provisional data of 2019 “registering 230 thousand tons”.

"This finding led many individuals to refer to the TGR of 11 Euros / tonne in 2020 as one of the causes for this evolution (...), although other causes can be pointed out, such as China's restrictions on waste imports in 2018" explains the ministry.

Despite the increase in the arrival of waste from other countries to Portuguese landfills, a MAAC source stressed that "Portugal is not the dustbin of Europe" and that it is even in Europe's "last positions" as a "waste destination for landfill", as indicated by the latest data compiled by Eurostat.

“Four countries receive 90 percent of the waste imported for disposal (which includes landfill, incineration and other disposal operations): Germany with 62 percent, France with 14 percent, Belgium with 9 percent and Austria with around 5 percent” and “Portugal is responsible for 1.61 percent of the waste imported for disposal”, reads a statement sent to Lusa.