The statistics – which provide an overview of how well the Welsh government is delivering its own environment strategy – are featured in the ‘State of the Environment’ report.

The document charts the progress made against 100 individual indicators for the environment and records improvement in 33 areas, up from 27 in last year’s report.

One of the areas showing significant improvement is recycling; with over 40 per cent of Wales’ municipal waste recycled in 2009/10, compared with just seven per cent a decade ago.

The quality of bathing water is another area on the up, as is the reduction of fly-tipping and work to help reduce the risks of flooding.

However, a further 32 indicators record no clear signs of improvement while five have been flagged as areas of decline (up from just two in 2010) including the size of Wales’ ecological footprint.

The remaining indicators are either currently under development or significant information was not available, the Welsh government claim.

Wales’ minister for the environment and sustainable development, John Griffiths, welcomed the latest statistics on their release. He said: “It is important that we have regular updates on the state of Wales’ environment so we can monitor our progress, review policy where necessary and focus on areas of need.

“I recognise that we face significant challenges to meet our goals for the environment. However our proposals on waste, sustainable development and managing the natural environment will enable us to fulfil our vision for an environment that is clean, healthy, biologically diverse and valued by the people of Wales.”

Full details can be found here.

Sam Plester

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