Seeking out a more sustainable means of production has been an aim for many companies across the globe since the dawn of the industrial revolution. In time, the need for eco-friendly means of production grew, and as years went by, various sustainable manufacturing principles and methods came and went. But recently, the idea of a circular economy or circularity has gained precedence. Although a reasonably old concept dating back to the 1960s, this method of sustainable production focused more on the technological side of manufacturing than the environmental side, something that all the other sustainability concepts never focused on.
A circular economy is meant to create products that would be used far beyond their normal functioning, well into and beyond the disposal stages. Unlike the marketing stunts by various companies in the country using fake displays of sustainability, the concept of a circular economy focuses on creating an environmentally-safe means of production rather than making false promises. Moreover, circular fashion has been gaining popularity and is even being hailed as the next step in sustainability and a gateway towards sustainable manufacturing. The circular means of production highlights everything from procuring the raw materials to the disposal of the final product after use. And after that, the finished product is brought back into the cycle through recycling.
Benefits Of Implementing A Circular Economy:
- One of the most notable benefits of implementing a circular economy is that it reduces the country’s dependency on all non-renewable sources of power. Companies will depend less on sources like oil and gas if their products are reused or recycled. This way, discarded products will still find a use-case scenario without wasting resources.
- It reduces carbon emissions by ensuring that the products are disposed of properly, and materials are reintroduced into the production cycle as much as possible.
- Unlike other sustainability models, the concept of a circular economy makes use of reusing and recycling more effectively. This makes the new method of sustainability a more practical solution for Australian economies to reduce the negative impacts on the environment.
- This new shift can open new opportunities for companies as well as consumers. The economic payoff has been estimated to be about 23 billion dollars more than Australia’s GDP. The shift will also allow the country to make better changes in terms of durable products and low wastage production cycles.
Barriers That Stand In The Way Of Implementing A Circular Economy:
- Most products made in the country exceed the demand expectations of the general public. This creates a surplus in the market that gives rise to overproduction.
- Due to a lack of awareness, many consumers purchase the cheapest products. Most cheap products are usually made from inferior materials, compromising quality for bulk production. Due to the lack of quality materials, the product won’t last as long and are discarded in landfills, the waste volume growing in numbers as the quality of these products goes down.
- There are no government regulations to keep the companies in check, and there are no initiatives taken by the governing bodies to implement these changes.
- Many parts of the country lack the proper infrastructure and resources to dispose of properly and handle waste products.
Conclusion
The concept of circularity is gaining traction. This ambitious movement will soon find itself in all industries, taking hold of all aspects of the economy.
