In 2020, in contrast with the behaviour of economic activity in Portugal in which GDP decreases significantly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, National expenditure on environmental protection (NEEP) increased 2.2%, as a result of positive variations in Final Consumption expenditure (+11.7%) and Investment (+10.2%), and a negative variation in Intermediate Consumption (-6.3%).

Corporations were responsible for more than half of the NEEP (53.3%), with General government and Non profit institutions serving households accounting for 25.8% and Households for the remaining 20.9%. The environmental domain that contributed most to the NEEP was Waste management (40.3%), followed by Wastewater management (32.4%). 

Employment engaged in the production of environmental protection services accounted for 1.0% of national employment. It recorded an increase (+8.3%), as opposed to the decrease recorded in the economy (-2.2%).

In 2019, the last year with available information for the EU, the share of NEEP in GDP (1.7%) was below the EU27 average (2.0%).