Projects linked to wastewater treatment drew the largest share of environmental protection investment in the EU in 2025.
Wastewater-related projects accounted for 37.7% of total spending, ahead of waste management at 27.3% and air and climate protection at 11.2%, Eurostat reported on Wednesday.
EU countries invested an estimated €79 billion in assets used to provide environmental protection services in 2025.
That total was equivalent to 0.4% of GDP — a broad measure of the size of an economy — and 1.9% of all investment across the EU economy.
Companies provided most of the funding
Companies made up the majority of the spending, investing €49.6 billion, or 62.7% of the total.
Environmental protection investments can include equipment to reduce air emissions, wastewater treatment plants, waste collection and treatment equipment, and vehicles used to transport waste.
The remaining 37.3% of environmental protection investment came from general government and the non-profit sector.
