Mexico Faces Waste Management Gap Despite Circular Economy Push

Mexico generates more than 139,000tof municipal solid waste daily, yet only 5% receives treatment, exposing major infrastructure, regulatory and traceability gaps in the country’s waste management system, according to SEMARNAT’s DBGIR 2026. The diagnosis positions circular economy policies, recycling infrastructure investment and stronger coordination between government, industry and recyclers as critical to reducing emissions, improving resource recovery and supporting Mexico’s environmental and industrial transition.

SEMARNAT presented the 2026 Basic Diagnosis for Integrated Waste Management (DBGIR 2026), the country’s main technical and national reference instrument aimed at strengthening public policy on waste management, recycling and the circular economy in Mexico.

During the presentation, Alicia Bárcena, Minister, SEMARNAT, stated that Mexico faces a structural challenge in waste management, but also anopportunity to transform the country’s development model. “Waste management in Mexico can no longer be understood as an isolated issue; it is a central component of the country’s transformation and development. It clearly reflects how we produce, consume and organize ourselves,” she said.

The document was prepared by the ministry in coordination with the National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change (INECC), with support from Open Society Foundations and technical cooperation from the German agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). It compiles updated information on municipal solid waste, special handling waste, hazardous waste, waste from the hydrocarbons sector and mining waste, as well as analyses related to infrastructure, circular economy, climate change, marine pollution, governance, financing, waste recovery and institutional capacity development.

The diagnosis revealed that Mexico generates more than 139,902t of municipal solid waste daily. Of this total, 40.15% corresponds to organic waste and 36.26% to potentially recoverable materials. However, only 5% of waste receives some form of treatment and 72% does not undergo any recovery or valorization process. The report also warns that national infrastructure remains insufficient and unevenly distributed: of the 2,250 final disposal sites registered across the country, only 52 operate as sanitary landfills that meet adequate disposal standards.

DBGIR 2026 also identifies gaps in infrastructure, collection coverage and institutional capabilities. Mexico currently has 132 transfer stations, 39 sorting plants and only 14 composting facilities to manage the growing volume of waste, according to data from the 2023 National Census of Municipal Governments and Territorial Demarcations of Mexico City (CNGMD).

The report further notes that the lack of standardized information, traceability and registration systems limits infrastructure planning and complicates progress toward circular economy models, particularly for special handling waste, hazardous waste and materials such as plastics, textiles, end-of-life tires, electronic waste and organic waste.

The document also highlights the regional and regulatory disparities affecting waste management in the country. The concentration of hazardous waste infrastructure in northern and central Mexico results in higher costs, longer transportation distances and increased transport-related emissions. Mexico currently has 184 facilities with installed capacity to manage 7.6Mt of hazardous waste, primarily located in the states of Nuevo Leon, Coahuila, State of Mexico, Baja California, and Veracruz, which together account for 73.17% of the country’s infrastructure for these activities.

Moreover, regulatory fragmentation and the lack of harmonization among different levels of government have limited the effective implementation of public policy. The diagnosis concludes that Mexico faces a structural challenge, but also a historic opportunity to transform its waste management model into one that is more strategic, circular, sustainable and based on reliable information. 

“You cannot protect what you do not know, and you cannot know what you do not measure. That is why this diagnosis is essential to understand who generates waste, where it is generated, how it is generated and what impacts it is having,” Bárcena emphasized.

During the event, authorities also presented the Ten Commitments for a Zero Waste Republic initiative, focused on protecting rivers, beaches and Protected Natural Areas; strengthening environmental governance; promoting waste separation; remediating disposal sites; coordinating investments; reducing emissions; advancing environmental education; fostering technological innovation; and recognizing grassroots recyclers as key actors in environmental policy.

José Samaniego, Deputy Minister of Sustainable Development and Circular Economy, SEMARNAT, stated that the diagnosis demonstrates the current waste management model is insufficient and increasingly deteriorated, making the circular economy the path forward to address Mexico’s environmental and productive challenges.

Representing the private sector, Adrián Estrada, President of the Circular Economy Commission, Confederation of Industrial Chambers of Mexico (CONCAMIN), said the new General Circular Economy Law represents an inclusive instrument that will allow Mexico to transition from a waste-generation model toward one based on material recovery and secondary raw materials through shared responsibility schemes involving government, industry and society.

Meanwhile, Judith Dillanes, Secretary General, National Recyclers Movement (MNR), called for greater recognition of grassroots recyclers in integrated waste management and proposed incorporating their recommendations into the regulations of the General Circular Economy Law. “Recycling without recyclers is garbage, and recyclers without rights are disposable,” she said.

Circular Economy in Mexico City

Julia Álvarez Icaza, Head, Mexico City’s Minister of Environment (SEDEMA), stated that discussing waste today is no longer only about urban cleanliness, but also about public health, climate change, socio-environmental justice and urban transformation. She emphasized that state and municipal governments face waste management challenges daily and underscored the importance of reliable information for decision-making and stronger public policies.

In Mexico City, the program Transform Your City, Every Waste Item in Its Place, launched earlier this year, made waste separation mandatory across three categories: organic waste, recyclable inorganic waste and non-recyclable inorganic waste. The campaign, promoted by the city administration, aims to foster a new environmental culture based on separation at the source, shared civic responsibility and sustainable waste recovery.

In line with this initiative, SEDEMA recently signed a collaboration agreement with Rappi Turbo to launch the Separa con Turbo (Separate with Turbo) campaign, an environmental education initiative designed to promote proper separation of municipal solid waste among residents of the capital. As part of the strategy, Rappi Turbo delivery bags will include printed guides with practical information on separating recyclable, non-recyclable and organic waste, providing citizens with simple and accessible tools to encourage better environmental habits at home.

The campaign will begin on May 18 and includes the distribution of approximately 700,000 waste separation guides, along with outreach efforts through app notifications, email campaigns and high-reach digital content. According to SEDEMA data, Mexico City generates 12,404t of waste daily, making source separation a key environmental priority in advancing toward a cleaner, more sustainable and shared-responsibility city model.

“It would not be possible to advance the circular economy agenda without multisector partnerships like this one. We need citizens, companies, government and civil society to become involved together in the environmental transformation of our city,” Álvarez said.