In 2023, Estonia spent €821 million on protecting its environment, having pumped up the expenditure 13% compared with 2022 and 56% in the period between 2014 and 2023.

Environmental protection expenditure accounts reflect the measures and expenditures targeted at the prevention, reduction or elimination of pollution. National expenditure on environmental protection is calculated as a sum of current expenditure and capital expenditure on environmental protection activities, after deducting transfers from the rest of the world, according to Statistics Estonia, the country’s official statistics agency.

Grete Luukas, a leading analyst at the agency, stated that nearly half of the environmental protection expenditure in 2023 – €404 million – was made up of expenditures on waste management.

“A large contribution to waste management was somewhat expected, as trash collection and waste disposal affect almost the entire society. In addition, it is a complex activity that has a number of stages to ensure that waste is handled properly. Waste management has been the biggest expenditure category in environmental protection in all reference years,” Luukas said. 

Increased government spending

Other activities with significant expenditure were wastewater management and protection of soil and water with €188 million, and protection of biodiversity and landscapes with €66 million. 

Compared with previous years, the largest increase was seen in other environmental protection activities (€100 million), where growth was driven by increased government spending on environmental protection. 

In 2023, there were €154 million worth of investments in assets required for environmental protection or provision of environmental services (eg water treatment plants, waste management facilities, waste transport vehicles and equipment and filters).

One third of the environmental protection investments in 2023 were made in wastewater management and protection of soil (€56 million). Owners of wastewater facilities have built, developed and renovated sewerage systems and made other investments in fixed assets. A sum of €34 million was invested in waste management and €19 million in the protection of biodiversity and landscapes.