Material Flow Analysis and its Status in Europe Countries

Abstract

Material Flow Analysis (MFA) is a family of different methods. MFA is a broad concept, and studies of varying scope and perspectives are being made in this field. MFA has contributed to the management of critical substance flows. Since the mid-1990s, analysis of material flows through regional economies, up to the level of economic regions, such as the European Union, and down to the firm level have been addressed under the title of MFA. Central and Eastern European countries will find it difficult to avoid moving towards unsustainably high levels of direct material input. The material flows into the EU economy measured as. Total Material Requirement (TMR) of the EU, which also accounts for the hidden flows, has been fluctuating around 51.8 tons/capita. Direct Material Input (DMI) of the accession countries has been increasing slightly throughout the 1990s, finally reaching some 11.5 tons/capita per year.