IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/inecol/v27y2023i1p254-271.html

Combining industrial ecology tools to assess potential greenhouse gas reductions of a circular economy: Method development and application to Switzerland

Author

Listed:
  • Maja Wiprächtiger
  • Melanie Haupt
  • Andreas Froemelt
  • Magdalena Klotz
  • Claudio Beretta
  • Dominik Osterwalder
  • Vanessa Burg
  • Stefanie Hellweg

Abstract

Industrial ecology (IE) methodologies, such as input/output or material flow analysis and life cycle assessment (LCA), are often used for the environmental evaluation of circular economy strategies. Up to now, an approach that utilizes these methods in a systematic, integrated framework for a holistic assessment of a geographic region's sustainable circular economy potential has been lacking. The approach developed in this study (IE4CE approach) combines IE methodologies to determine the environmental impact mitigation potential of circular economy strategies for a defined geographic region. The approach foresees five steps. First, input/output analysis helps identify sectors with high environmental impacts. Second, a refined analysis is conducted using material flow and LCA. In step 3, circular strategies are used for scenario design and evaluated in step 4. In step 5, the assessment results are compiled and compared across sectors. The approach was applied to a case study of Switzerland, analyzing 8 sectors and more than 30 scenarios in depth. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) from waste incineration, biogas and cement production, food waste prevention in households, hospitality and production, and the increased recycling of plastics had the highest mitigation potential. Most of the scenarios do not influence each other. One exception is the CCS scenarios: waste avoidance scenarios decrease the reduction potential of CCS. A combination of scenarios from different sectors, including their impact on the CCS scenario potential, led to an environmental impact mitigation potential of 11.9 Mt CO2‐eq for 2050, which equals 14% of Switzerland's current consumption‐based impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Maja Wiprächtiger & Melanie Haupt & Andreas Froemelt & Magdalena Klotz & Claudio Beretta & Dominik Osterwalder & Vanessa Burg & Stefanie Hellweg, 2023. "Combining industrial ecology tools to assess potential greenhouse gas reductions of a circular economy: Method development and application to Switzerland," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 27(1), pages 254-271, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:inecol:v:27:y:2023:i:1:p:254-271
    DOI: 10.1111/jiec.13364
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13364
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/jiec.13364?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Maja Wiprächtiger & Martina Rapp & Stefanie Hellweg & Rhythima Shinde & Melanie Haupt, 2022. "Turning trash into treasure: An approach to the environmental assessment of waste prevention and its application to clothing and furniture in Switzerland," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 26(4), pages 1389-1405, August.
    2. Nancy M. P. Bocken & Elsa A. Olivetti & Jonathan M. Cullen & José Potting & Reid Lifset, 2017. "Taking the Circularity to the Next Level: A Special Issue on the Circular Economy," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 21(3), pages 476-482, June.
    3. Niko Heeren & Stefanie Hellweg, 2019. "Tracking Construction Material over Space and Time: Prospective and Geo‐referenced Modeling of Building Stocks and Construction Material Flows," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 23(1), pages 253-267, February.
    4. Florian Lüdeke‐Freund & Stefan Gold & Nancy M. P. Bocken, 2019. "A Review and Typology of Circular Economy Business Model Patterns," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 23(1), pages 36-61, February.
    5. John R. Ehrenfeld, 2004. "Can Industrial Ecology be the “Science of Sustainability”?," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 8(1‐2), pages 1-3, January.
    6. United Nations, 2016. "The Sustainable Development Goals 2016," Working Papers id:11456, eSocialSciences.
    7. Kirchherr, Julian & Reike, Denise & Hekkert, Marko, 2017. "Conceptualizing the circular economy: An analysis of 114 definitions," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 221-232.
    8. Andreas Froemelt & René Buffat & Stefanie Hellweg, 2020. "Machine learning based modeling of households: A regionalized bottom‐up approach to investigate consumption‐induced environmental impacts," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 24(3), pages 639-652, June.
    9. Willi Haas & Fridolin Krausmann & Dominik Wiedenhofer & Markus Heinz, 2015. "How Circular is the Global Economy?: An Assessment of Material Flows, Waste Production, and Recycling in the European Union and the World in 2005," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 19(5), pages 765-777, October.
    10. Thomas Wiedmann, 2009. "Editorial: Carbon Footprint And Input-Output Analysis - An Introduction," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(3), pages 175-186.
    11. Melanie Haupt & Carl Vadenbo & Stefanie Hellweg, 2017. "Do We Have the Right Performance Indicators for the Circular Economy?: Insight into the Swiss Waste Management System," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 21(3), pages 615-627, June.
    12. Mélanie Schmutz & Roland Hischier & Claudia Som, 2021. "Factors Allowing Users to Influence the Environmental Performance of Their T-Shirt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-16, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kakar, Shayan Khan & Wang, Jing & Arshed, Noman & Le Hien, Tran Thi & Akhter, Sehrish & Abdullahi, Nazir Muhammad, 2025. "The impact of circular economy, sustainable infrastructure, and green FinTech on biodiversity in Europe: A holistic approach," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    2. Carlos A. Romero & Sofia Rojo Brizuela & Gustavo Ferro, 2024. "Measuring the Effects of Increasing Circularity in the Economy Through Recycling," Circular Economy and Sustainability, Springer, vol. 4(1), pages 503-522, March.
    3. Abbas, Sohail & Kashif, Uzma & Kousar, Shazia & Noor, Shameen & Lu, Heli & Lu, Siqi, 2025. "Machine learning-based prediction analysis for Australia sustainable transport: Optimal transportation mix equation for long-term policy planning and environmental impact mitigation," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 337(C).
    4. Paraschiv Liana, 2024. "From Constitutional Mandate to Holistic Sustainability: Insights from Switzerland’s Strategic Approach," Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence, Sciendo, vol. 18(1), pages 913-925.
    5. Shakeel Ahmad & Xuepin Wu & Atta UR Rahman & Asad Ullah, 2025. "Unlocking industrial decarbonization: the catalytic role of artificial intelligence in circular economy practices from EU countries," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-15, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cris Garcia-Saravia Ortiz-de-Montellano & Yvonne Meer, 2022. "A Theoretical Framework for Circular Processes and Circular Impacts Through a Comprehensive Review of Indicators," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 23(2), pages 291-314, June.
    2. Graziela Darla Araujo Galvão & Steve Evans & Paulo Sergio Scoleze Ferrer & Marly Monteiro de Carvalho, 2022. "Circular business model: Breaking down barriers towards sustainable development," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 1504-1524, May.
    3. Chembessi Chedrak & Gohoungodji Paulin & Juste Rajaonson, 2023. "“A fine wine, better with age”: Circular economy historical roots and influential publications: A bibliometric analysis using Reference Publication Year Spectroscopy (RPYS)," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 27(6), pages 1593-1612, December.
    4. Gilbert Silvius & Aydan Ismayilova & Vicente Sales-Vivó & Micol Costi, 2021. "Exploring Barriers for Circularity in the EU Furniture Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-25, October.
    5. Georgios Lanaras-Mamounis & Anastasios Kipritsis & Thomas A. Tsalis & Konstantinos Ι. Vatalis & Ioannis E. Nikolaou, 2022. "A Framework for Assessing the Contribution of Firms to Circular Economy: a Triple-Level Approach," Circular Economy and Sustainability, Springer, vol. 2(3), pages 883-902, September.
    6. Dominik Noll & Christian Lauk & Willi Haas & Simron Jit Singh & Panos Petridis & Dominik Wiedenhofer, 2022. "The sociometabolic transition of a small Greek island: Assessing stock dynamics, resource flows, and material circularity from 1929 to 2019," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 26(2), pages 577-591, April.
    7. Patrick Elf & Andrea Werner & Sandy Black, 2022. "Advancing the circular economy through dynamic capabilities and extended customer engagement: Insights from small sustainable fashion enterprises in the UK," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(6), pages 2682-2699, September.
    8. Erik G. Hansen & Ferdinand Revellio, 2020. "Circular value creation architectures: Make, ally, buy, or laissez‐faire," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 24(6), pages 1250-1273, December.
    9. Paweł Nowicki & Marek Ćwiklicki & Piotr Kafel & Janusz Niezgoda & Magdalena Wojnarowska, 2023. "The circular economy and its benefits for pro‐environmental companies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4584-4599, November.
    10. Born, Konstantin, 2025. "Adoption of circular economy practices in the mining sector: Evidence from Chile," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    11. Fenna Blomsma & Thomas Bauwens & Ilka Weissbrod & Julian Kirchherr, 2023. "The ‘need for speed’: Towards circular disruption—What it is, how to make it happen and how to know it's happening," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(3), pages 1010-1031, March.
    12. Christoph Helbig & Jonas Huether & Charlotte Joachimsthaler & Christian Lehmann & Simone Raatz & Andrea Thorenz & Martin Faulstich & Axel Tuma, 2022. "A terminology for downcycling," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 26(4), pages 1164-1174, August.
    13. Brunella Arru & Roberto Furesi & Pietro Pulina & Paola Sau & Fabio A. Madau, 2022. "The Circular Economy in the Agri-food system: A Performance Measurement of European Countries," Economia agro-alimentare, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 24(2), pages 1-35.
    14. Andreas Mayer & Willi Haas & Dominik Wiedenhofer & Fridolin Krausmann & Philip Nuss & Gian Andrea Blengini, 2019. "Measuring Progress towards a Circular Economy: A Monitoring Framework for Economy‐wide Material Loop Closing in the EU28," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 23(1), pages 62-76, February.
    15. Jaime Sánchez-Ortiz & Vanesa Rodríguez-Cornejo & Rosario Del Río-Sánchez & Teresa García-Valderrama, 2020. "Indicators to Measure Efficiency in Circular Economies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-15, June.
    16. Chowdhury, Soumyadeb & Ren, Shuang & Richey, Robert Glenn, 2025. "Leveraging artificial intelligence to facilitate green servitization: Resource orchestration and Re-institutionalization perspectives," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 281(C).
    17. German Arana‐Landin & Waleska Sigüenza & Beñat Landeta‐Manzano & Iker Laskurain‐Iturbe, 2024. "Circular economy: On the road to ISO 59000 family of standards," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(3), pages 1977-2009, May.
    18. Marianne Kuhlmann & Catharina R. Bening & Volker H. Hoffmann, 2023. "How incumbents realize disruptive circular innovation ‐ Overcoming the innovator's dilemma for a circular economy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(3), pages 1106-1121, March.
    19. Longo, Sonia & Cellura, Maurizio & Luu, Le Quyen & Nguyen, Thanh Quang & Rincione, Roberta & Guarino, Francesco, 2024. "Circular economy and life cycle thinking applied to the biomass supply chain: A review," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 220(C).
    20. Edgar Battand Towa Kouokam & Vanessa Zeller & Wouter Achten, 2021. "Assessing the circularity of regions: Stakes of trade of waste for treatment," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/332186, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:inecol:v:27:y:2023:i:1:p:254-271. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=1088-1980 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.