Would circular economy approaches secure a way towards decarbonisation?

A shift in the way that we use materials is essential to reduce the production and consumption of energy and carbon-intensive materials. Circular economy concept has been put at the centre of these efforts, but is by no means an easy or guaranteed path to decarbonisation. Very different types of approaches are being labelled as circular economy, and not all circles are as certain to result in significant emission reductions.

Great hope is pinned on the idea of a circular economy to provide the remedy for the problem modern economies have with resource depletion, waste management, and greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, a shift in the way that we use materials is essential to reduce the production and consumption of energy and carbon-intensive materials. Primary production of steel, plastics and paper emit large amounts of CO2and reusing or recycling these materials is in most cases connected to significant changes in the carbon footprint of their applications. There are both technological processes and policies in place for recycling these materials, but there are large differences between their effectiveness and potentials. Recovering the materials needs changes in waste management to improve quality and quantity but ultimately it is the design and provision of the products and services that will optimise circular flows.

Very different types of approaches are being labelled as circular economy, and they can make different contributions. Reuse of products is in a way the simplest – yet at the same time often most complicated – option. Packaging-free supermarkets are one example of this approach where customers are encouraged to bring their own packaging from home every time they go shopping [see Zero-waste stores case study]. The consumer packaging is however commonly only a minor part of the carbon footprint of most value chains, especially for high-carbon foods such as meat or dairy. 

Recycling reduces the need for virgin production of materials but is commonly still laborious and fairly energy-intensive. Products have to be collected, transported, sorted, and traded before they can be used to produce new materials. The appetite of our economies for materials keeps increasing, leading to limited possibilities to supply the demand with recycled ones. Steel is for example recycled to a high degree, but as cities and infrastructures (e.g. power grids and roads) are still expanding, the recycled steel is unable to meet the demand. Steel made from recycled scrap currently only corresponds to a third of European production. 

However, not all circles are as certain to result in significant emission reductions. Chemical recycling of plastics is advertised as a circular approach for all plastics [see Enerkem case study], yet at the cost of large amounts of energy and carbon emissions. If chemical recycling substitutes the recycling of high quality mechanical recycling, the net impact on decarbonisation may in fact be negative. Mechanical recycling typically uses less energy but is only suitable for certain types of plastics. Hence, circular economy approaches need to be well designed to optimise the contribution to decarbonisation. The European Green Deal puts a circular economy in the centre, but this is by no means an easy or guaranteed path to decarbonisation.