ACR+

The potential of circular economy

• To reach carbon neutrality in 2050, the carbon footprint of EU citizens must decrease from about 11 tCO2e to 4 tCO2e per inhabitant in 2030;
• According to different sources, the impact of food and material production accounts for 33% to 45% of the European carbon footprint;
• Circular economy has a tremendous potential to mitigate the impact of products, by preventing waste generation, extending the lifetime of products, and closing the loops of materials.

It is possible for European cities and regions to reduce the EU carbon footprint of several key sectors by implementing ambitious, yet feasible actions. These sectors are: food, construction, textiles, electronic and electrical equipment, plastic. However, these key sectors might be different from one territory to another, depending on the current practices, consumption patterns, and local context.

EU carbon footprint of several key sectors - ACR+*

It is also important to note that waste management has a rather limited direct impact on carbon emission. Waste-centred approaches are too limited to effectively tackle the carbon footprint of material resources. Circular economy strategies should therefore focus more on production and consumption, and on the production of relevant secondary raw materials to decrease the extraction of virgin materials.

ACR+'s 25th anniversary, making the link between circular economy and climate mitigation

For more than 25 years, ACR+ has been supporting cities and regions in their transition towards a circular economy by promoting a sustainable resource management, encouraging the exchange of good practices and experiences between members, and sharing technical and policy information. The network strongly advocates for the key role of cities and regions in the circular economy.

To celebrate its anniversary and push further its message, ACR+ was determined make the link between circular economy and climate mitigation. For that, it was necessary to show that cities and regions are crucial players to reduce the carbon footprint of several key sectors by implementing ambitious yet feasible actions to prevent losses and waste, extend the lifetime of products, and close the loops of materials.

This is how the More Circularity, Less Carbon campaign was born.

Activities

Behind its ambitious goal, the campaign takes into account the diversity of contexts, scope of actions and policy instruments across participating authorities. Participating members will assess their carbon footprint, set their own action plans, monitor the results, and put in common their good practices and findings, under the coordination of ACR+ secretariat. They will benefit from the following activities:

• Exchange good practices;
• Conduct cross analysis with annual reports;
• Improve and mainstream the inclusion of carbon consideration in local circular economy policies;
• Benefit from tools and methodologies open to all, with the assistance of ACR+ Secretariat for the collection of data and the analysis of results.

The Carbon Metric International, toward climate-oriented strategies

To go beyond weight-based waste measurement a specific tool will be developed: the Carbon Metric International. This will be adapted from the Scottish Carbon Metric, which has been used by Zero Waste Scotland since 2011 to measure the whole life carbon impacts of Scotland’s waste, regardless of where in the world they occur. It includes the emissions from resource extraction and manufacturing of the products  that turned into waste. This type of carbon accounting gives a more complete picture of the impacts of products, allowing decision makers to prioritise their efforts for maximum carbon savings.

First cohort: Pays de la Loire region, Brussels and Genova

Three territories are now part of the first cohort of the Campaign: Pays de la Loire region, Brussels and Genova.

For several months, these pilot territories collected data to identify key sectors and materials with high carbon reduction potential and draw effective action plans. The data collected is currently analysed using the Carbon Metric International. This first experience highlighted several challenges such as a lack of data on the composition of mixed fractions or on the outcomes of the different fractions. It has been also challenging to collect relevant data on local or regional consumption patterns.