1. A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR
DENMARK IN A GLOBAL
CONTEXT
WASTE-TO-ENERGY IN THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY
21ST OCTOBER 2015
Dr Mervyn Jones
Sustainable Global Resources
United Kingdom
6. DANISH RESOURCE STRATEGY
SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL RESOURCES LTD 6
Published November 2013
The goal is that over the
next 10 years Denmark is
to recycle more than
twice as much household
waste as 2013.
This is a marked change in
waste policy.
9. WHY A CIRCULAR ECONOMY?
Carbon
Recovery
Recycling
Repair
Re-use
Material
extraction
Disposal
Design &
Production
Use
Retail &
Distribution
Resource
Minimisation
Waste
Prevention
Water Materials
Stability Resilience Competition
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11. WHY A CIRCULAR ECONOMY?
World Economic Forum (2014) Towards the Circular Economy: Accelerating the scale-up across global supply
chains
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12. 80
100
120
140
160
180
200
1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012
Input prices Output prices
UK manufacturing input (energy & commodities) and output prices
2000 = 100
Source: ONS
90%
ADDRESSING PRODUCTION COSTS
30%
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13. RESILIENCE
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• Decoupling waste from growth for all OECDs
• Denmark is increasing waste through consumption in a
period of economic downturn
14. EU CIRCULAR ECONOMY
2015 consultation due to report imminently
Global competition for resources is increasing. Supply
concentration of resources, e.g. CRMs outside the EU
markets dependent on imports, vulnerable to high prices &
volatility
Can promote competitiveness, innovation, greater
protection for humans and the environment, and major
economic benefits including growth and job creation
Requires action at all stages of the life cycle of products
Requires demand-side measures
Barriers to the circular economy includes market failures
and also governance and regulatory failures
Denmark provided 90 (7%) of over 1400 responses
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15. CONSULTATION SUMMARY
89% were well or fairly informed about the CE
89% felt (very) important to minimise lifecycle environmental
impacts
84% want impact on consumers (e.g. durability & reparability)
>75% want to encourage the consumption of green products
73% want to promote collaboration between and among
private and public sectors, including end-users
>72% want to promote and/or enable the use of economic
incentives for eco-innovation &sustainable product design
>70% want to encourage industry-led initiatives
67% want to impact on EU imports and exports
64% want to establish binding rules on product design
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16. VIEWS ON PRODUCT FEATURES
Recyclability – 86% felt (very) important
Durability - 83%
Resource use in the use phase (e.g. water efficiency) – 83%
Reusability -78%
Increase in reused parts or RC – 76%
Reparability: Product design & parts availability facilitating
maintenance and repair activities – 74%
Reparability: Availability of information on product repair -
73%
Upgradability and modularity – 71%
Biodegradability and compostability – 60%
Packaging & Small EE were the clear priorities identified
(followed by construction, textiles & large white goods)
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17. CIRCULARITY IN THE EU ECONOMIES
Source: ETC SCP/WRAP unpublished, 2013
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19. EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
“Growth in the circular
economy can be expected
to have lasting beneficial
effects on the labour
market.”
Employment and the circular economy, WRAP
& Green Alliance, 2015
Between 2000 and
2010, sales turnover
in the waste and
recycling sector had
nearly tripled, to
over £18 billion.
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29. PROMOTING A CIRCULAR APPROACH
Waste prevention has
greatest impact
Ensuring the circular design
of products
Optimising lifetimes of
products
Ensuring right collection
routes
Developing the right
markets
Implementing a balanced
approach
Using closed loop
approaches
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30. THANK YOU
Dr Mervyn Jones
mervyn@sustainableglobalresources.co.uk
?any questions?
SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL RESOURCES LTD