| Title |
Regional material flow tools to promote circular economy |
| ID_Doc |
533 |
| Authors |
Virtanen, M; Manskinen, K; Uusitalo, V; Syvänne, J; Cura, K |
| Title |
Regional material flow tools to promote circular economy |
| Year |
2019 |
| Published |
|
| DOI |
10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.326 |
| Abstract |
Although the concept of circular economy is gaining increasing attention, there is a lack of tools or any agreed methodology for evaluating circularity. To date, circularity has been assessed mainly at product level, but national and regional level assessment is also essential in evaluating the effectiveness of circular economy strategies. As regions play an important role in implementing both EU and national strategies, the paper seeks to develop indicators for evaluating the circularity of material flows at regional level. In the case region of Paijat-Hame in Finland, the circular economy strategy is among the region's smart specialisation spearheads, and Paijat-Name has a road map for moving towards a circular economy. The material flows examined in this study were phosphorous, plastics, textiles, waste wood and ash. While the region has high utilisation rates for plastics, textiles and waste wood, a significant proportion of material flows relates to energy production rather than material recycling. The present analysis highlights the difficulty of obtaining regional-level information on material flows; the available information and statistics relate mainly to waste flows or to national averages that do not necessarily reflect regional characteristics. For that reason, the indicators are based on circulation of waste materials rather than material circulation for the whole value chain from manufacturing to reuse and recycling. Nevertheless, the developed indicators provide a simple measure of circularity for regional material flows and can be further developed as more information becomes available. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
| Author Keywords |
Circular economy; Regional approach; Waste flows; Energy use; Material use |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) |
| EID |
WOS:000482491500085 |
| WoS Category |
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Engineering, Environmental; Environmental Sciences |
| Research Area |
Science & Technology - Other Topics; Engineering; Environmental Sciences & Ecology |
| PDF |
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