GRI 306 Waste
GRI 306 covers waste generated in operations and its disposal routes — landfill, incineration, recycling, reuse. The 2020 revision overhauled the standard with a lifecycle approach and new focus on waste diverted from disposal. It maps closely to ESRS E5 (circular economy).
GRI 306 covers waste generated in operations and its disposal routes — landfill, incineration, recycling, reuse. The 2020 GRI 306 revision replaced the 2016 version with a substantially different structure.
The 2020 revision — what changed
The 2020 GRI 306 revision replaced the 2016 version with a substantially different structure. The old version focused on total waste by disposal method. The new version uses a lifecycle framing — waste generated, then split between waste diverted from disposal (recycled, reused, composted) and waste directed to disposal (landfill, incineration).
306-1 Waste generation and significant waste-related impacts: Total waste generated in metric tonnes, with qualitative description of significant impacts.
306-2 Management of significant waste-related impacts: Approach to managing and mitigating waste impacts.
306-3 Waste generated: Total in metric tonnes, by hazardous and non-hazardous, by composition where material.
306-4 Waste diverted from disposal: Total diverted, broken down by reuse, recycling, composting, recovery and other recovery operations — separately for onsite and offsite.
306-5 Waste directed to disposal: Total by landfill, incineration with energy recovery, incineration without energy recovery, and other disposal — separately for onsite and offsite.
GRI 306 vs ESRS E5 — circular economy alignment
ESRS E5 (circular economy) and GRI 306 overlap significantly. ESRS E5 requires: resource inflows (materials, water, energy used); resource outflows (waste generated, products and materials leaving the organisation); and waste metrics.
GRI 306-3, 306-4 and 306-5 map directly to the ESRS E5 waste metrics. ESRS E5 additionally requires resource inflow disclosure (materials consumed) which has no GRI 306 equivalent — GRI 301 (Materials) covers this.
For CSRD companies also reporting GRI: collect GRI 306 data as part of your ESRS E5 data collection. The waste diverted/directed framework of GRI 306 matches the ESRS E5 approach closely.
Hazardous vs non-hazardous classification
GRI 306 requires separate disclosure of hazardous and non-hazardous waste. The classification follows Basel Convention Annex I/III (internationally) or local regulations (which may be stricter).
Common hazardous waste streams: electronic waste (WEEE), batteries, solvents, chemicals, contaminated materials, clinical waste (healthcare sector), asbestos.
For hazardous waste, additional disclosure of disposal method is required — and for international transfers, the Basel Convention rules on transboundary movement apply. Most companies engage licensed waste contractors; documentation of waste transfer notes is essential for GRI 306 data collection.
Frequently asked questions
Does GRI 306 cover wastewater?
No — wastewater is covered by GRI 303 (Water and Effluents). GRI 306 covers solid and semi-solid waste. Some liquid hazardous waste may appear in both depending on disposal route.
We are a service business — do we have material waste to report?
Probably less than manufacturers, but not zero. Office paper, electronics (WEEE), food waste from canteens, and construction waste from fit-outs all count. Run a waste audit — many service companies are surprised by the volume of WEEE from regular hardware refreshes.
What is the difference between waste diverted from disposal and recycled?
Recycling is one subcategory of waste diverted from disposal. GRI 306-4 includes: reuse, recycling, composting, recovery, and other recovery operations. Diverted from disposal is the parent category — recycled is a subset of it.