Theoretical availability of CRMs in Dutch waste streams

Published on 13 November 2025

How can different waste streams contribute to the European recycling goals within the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA)? To illustrate this, the Netherlands Materials Observatory (NMO) examined the theoretical availability of critical raw materials in six categories of waste streams in the Netherlands. The results are presented in a methodological report and visually represented in the infographic below.

Background and focus

Under the theme of recycling and circularity, the NMO aims to provide relevant information related to the theoretical availability of CRMs in Dutch waste streams. This is an ongoing effort, and for this year (and in this report), the focus has been given to six waste stream categories:

  • Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
  • Vehicles (including batteries)
  • Batteries (portable)
  • Construction and Demolition Waste (C&DW)
  • Steel slags
  • Bottom ash

The selection of these waste streams is based on the CRMs recovery potential waste streams listed by the European Commission, their relevance within the Dutch economy and the availability of data.

Visual representation of the results

Infographic showing the theoretical availability of critical raw materials in Dutch waste streams. See the caption for further explanation.
This infographic is a first attempt to quantify the theoretical availability of CRMs in six Dutch waste streams categories (see the paragraph above). It provides, on an elemental level, the theoretical composition of waste streams across the Dutch economy for the recent years (mass/year). These insights can serve as a basis for further exploring the opportunities and enabling conditions to recover these materials from these waste streams. For the underlying data of the infographic or the definition of each waste stream see the full report (see the link at the bottom of this page).

Contribute

We invite experts in academia and the industry to contribute to this research. The NMO actively welcomes all insights, ideas and feedback. Fill in the contact form or send an email to info@nederlandsmaterialenobservatorium.nl.

See the full results in the report: ‘Theoretical availability of CRMs in Dutch waste streams - methodological report’.