# Northern Ireland material footprint fell to 38.5 million tonnes in 2023

> The consumption-based measure fell 0.9% year on year, while the footprint was 20.1 tonnes per person.

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- Publisher: Newsverum
- Section: Environment
- Country: United Kingdom
- Published: 2026-10-21T11:11:49+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-21T11:11:49+00:00
- Event / data period: 2023
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Northern Ireland’s Department for the Economy estimated its material footprint at 38.5 million tonnes in 2023, down 0.9% from 2022, in statistics published on 21 October. The consumption-based measure counts primary raw materials used throughout the supply chains of goods and services consumed by Northern Ireland residents.

The footprint fell from 20.3 tonnes per person in 2022 to 20.1 tonnes in 2023, compared with 17.5 tonnes for the UK. Non-metallic minerals accounted for 46% of the total, followed by biomass at 26%, fossil fuels at 18% and metal ores at 10%. Estimates use a consumption-account model and household spending survey data.

## Data

### Footprint and composition

Northern Ireland, 2023; annual change is from 2022.

Methodology: Modelled consumption-based raw-material estimate; composition shares are portions of the total.

| Total footprint | Annual change | Footprint per person | Non-metallic minerals share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 38.5 | -0.9 | 20.1 | 46 |

Sources: <https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/northern-irelands-material-footprint-2001-to-2023> · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/northern-ireland-material-footprint-falls-2023/data/material-footprint-2023?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/northern-ireland-material-footprint-falls-2023/data/material-footprint-2023?lang=en&format=csv)

## Sources

- [Department for the Economy (Northern Ireland)](<https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/northern-irelands-material-footprint-2001-to-2023>) (Source checked: 2026-10-21; Published: 2026-10-21)

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