An often suggested method for waste prevention is substitution of currently-used materials with materials which are less bulky, contain less hazardous components or are easier to recycle. For policy makers it is important to have tools available that provide information on the impact of this substitution on the changes in total amounts of waste generated and managed. The purpose of this paper is to see how much changes in the mix of 15 waste streams generated in eight economic sectors from 30 European countries have influenced the amounts of waste generated and managed in the period 2004–2012. In order to determine these impacts, two variations of the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) analysis model were developed and applied. The results show that the changes in the mix of waste streams in most cases did not have a considerable influence on the changes in the amounts of generated waste. In the analyses of waste sent for landfill, incineration without energy recovery, incineration with energy recovery and recovery other than energy recovery, the results also show that the changes in the mix of waste streams in most cases did not have the expected/desired influence on the changes in the amounts of managed waste. This paper provides an example on the possibilities of applying the LMDI analysis as a tool for quantifying the potential of effects which implemented or planned measures could have on the changes in waste management systems.