Limited circularity in global production
This material flow diagram from the latest Global Resources Outlook indicates that the global economy consumed 106 billion tonnes of materials in 2019, 91% of which came from extraction and harvesting, while a mere 9% (9.5 billion tonnes) came from recycled or recovered resources. Despite growing attention to circularity, the reality is stark: Energy needs alone account for 40% of this consumption (which cannot be recycled), while the remaining 60% supports durable assets like buildings and infrastructure, as well as consumer products. Waste flows are massive, generating 30 billion tonnes of solid and liquid waste and 47 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. Material stocks, which have surged since the 1970s, experienced a net addition of 31 billion tonnes in 2019. Experts estimate that maximal resource recovery could only reach 30–40%, and even that would be inherently challenging: re-concentrating dispersed materials demands significant energy, which itself cannot be recycled and entails unavoidable losses. This necessitates a constant influx of fresh matter and energy. While the biosphere can regenerate some of our wastes into raw materials, it cannot sustain this service at the accelerating pace of economic growth. A radical shift toward degrowth is essential; without it, circularity becomes empty rhetoric.