Menen residual waste keeps falling as city reports 100 tonnes less to burn
Updated 29 June 2026, 12:00 UTC | MENEN, West Flanders — Menen’s residual waste figures keep falling, with the city reporting about 100 tonnes less waste for incineration, according to Het Nieuwsblad. The decline fits the Flemish policy push, led by OVAM, to cut household residual waste through sorting, prevention and local collection rules.
Lower residual waste means less material goes to incineration, which reduces treatment costs and supports Flemish waste-prevention targets. For residents, the practical effect is direct: better sorting of organic waste, paper, glass, packaging and recycling-park streams lowers what remains in the residual-waste bag or bin.
The story concerns residual waste, known in Dutch as restafval: household waste left after recyclable, compostable and reusable materials have been sorted out. Het Nieuwsblad reported the local Menen figure. OVAM, the Flemish Public Waste Agency, sets the wider policy framework for municipal waste prevention and recycling in Flanders.
Background
Flanders has spent decades moving household waste away from landfill and toward separate collection, recycling and energy recovery. OVAM’s current local materials policy keeps pressure on municipalities to reduce residual household waste and increase reuse and recycling.
Impact
Regional — The impact is local to Menen and the surrounding MIROM Menen service area in south-west West Flanders. It signals that municipal sorting rules and household behaviour are reducing waste volumes sent for burning.
Opposing perspectives
- Menen city and waste-service officials
Municipal and intermunicipal waste officials present the fall in residual waste as evidence that sorting rules and resident participation are working. Their priority is to keep heavy recyclable and compostable streams out of the residual-waste system so less afval minder moeten be burned.
- Households and small businesses
Residents and small businesses judge the policy through daily convenience and cost. Better sorting reduces residual waste, but it also requires space, knowledge of collection calendars and trips to recycling points, which makes clear communication essential.