Introduction to the Circular Economy

Key takeaways:

• In a Linear Economy, materials are extracted, used and disposed of, risking the exhaustion of limited materials, the constant growth of landfills, the waste of energy and damage to ecosystems
• In a Circular Economy, products, components, and materials remain as long as possible in the loop, minimising the use of virgin material and waste generation

Linear Economy

The Linear Economy follows the take > make > use > dispose flow. There is a linear flow from resource extraction to disposal of products. Consequently, available resources diminish, and waste grows. The disadvantages of a linear economy are:

1. Continues extraction of limited resources will lead to unavailability of these resources
2. Resource extraction that exceeds the regeneration rate of this resource reduces the stock thereof
3. Energy used to process materials and create products is lost
4. Landfills require ever-growing space and pose a risk to the health of humans and ecosystems
5. In cases where access to specific resources is very limited, the risk of unavailable or expensive supply is rising

Circular Economy

The core idea of the circular economy is that resources circulate within the economy. They never become waste. They keep their value. The linear flow from the linear economy is transformed into a loop within a circular economy.

The benefits of the circular economy are:

1. Reduced resource extraction and environmental impact
2. Lower adverse impact by ever-growing landfills
3. Energy used to keep materials in the loop could be lower than energy used to extract new virgin materials (not automatically, though)
4. Locally, higher independence from supply chain shortages

Within a circular economy, biological and technical cycles are treated differently.

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