Zero Waste: A natural strategy to combat Climate Crisis

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Zero Waste: A natural strategy to combat Climate Crisis
by shamim ahmed mridha \| 05-09-2021 04:07 0
We consume an enormous amount of energy to heat our homes, transport ourselves, and manufacture things. We hear a lot about the need to transform our energy systems in order to combat climate change, about how energy and transportation are the two primary contributors — the smokestacks and tailpipes. More than 40% of our climate impact in the United States is due to our stuff and food — how we make, transport, use, and discard them. This is referred to as our consumption emissions. The more stuff we buy and discard, the more energy is required to create new stuff, and the more quickly climate change accelerates. Zero Waste addresses the entire system of our stuff and has the potential to significantly reduce climate emissions by altering what and how much we buy, the resources used to make it, the lifespan of the product, how much is reused, recycled, or composted, and what we discard. We require additional time to address our long-term energy and transportation challenges. Zero waste strategies can be implemented immediately by leveraging existing technologies and proven programs. Zero Waste can buy us time to develop more sophisticated energy and transportation solutions. By 2030, Zero Waste strategies have the potential to cut GHG emissions by over 400 million metric tons CO2 per year, the equivalent of shutting down more than 20% of coal-fired power plants in the United States. This means that Zero Waste generates more annual GHG savings than nuclear power expansion, significant vehicle efficiency improvements, carbon capture projects, and a variety of other prominent climate strategies. Zero waste strategies are also cost effective in terms of climate change mitigation. Recycling and composting, according to ICLEI, are two of the most cost-effective measures local governments can take to reduce community GHG emissions. Communities worldwide are prioritizing Zero Waste as a climate action priority. California's landmark climate change policy included a requirement for businesses and apartments to recycle, which will result in a five million metric ton reduction in GHG emissions. Experts from a variety of fields support Zero Waste as a climate solution. The immediate climate benefits of Zero Waste are largely due to the energy savings associated with recycling. Recycling materials to create new products consumes less energy than manufacturing new products from trees, fossil fuels, or metal ores. This means we consume fewer fossil fuels — such as oil, natural gas, and coal — and emit fewer greenhouse gases. The energy savings occur when the paper, glass, metal, and plastic that you and I recycle are repurposed into new products. Rather than using trees, oil, natural gas, and raw minerals to create new products, manufacturers use our recycled materials and save between 30% and 90% of the energy required to manufacture new products.

Dormant user shamim ahmed mridha

5 Comments

Hannah Mentor says :
Hello Shamim,
this is your mentor Hannah.

Loved your article on overall zero waste. As you have written, consumption emission accelerates climate change and dealing this by zero waste movement will be a great solution.
In terms of climate change mitigation, will zero waste be cost efficient? For early stages of zero waste, factories and product designs should be entirely changed and it might cost a lot, don't you think? However, after the early stages cost will definitely decrease.

Nice job and have a wonderful day :)

Hannah
Posted 07-09-2021 11:11

Joon Mentor says :
Hello Shamim, this is your mentor Joon.

Well read your detailed article and I can imagine how much effort and time put to write this article. Zero waste can be a strategy to combat climate crisis. In fact, most of the movements that are highlighted theses days, related to environment, are fit to combat climate change as majority of them aim to reduce harmful factors affecting earth. Zero waste does that by reducing amount of trash thrown away, raise efficiency and reduce influence while processing the trash. Though Zero waste movement might not be cost efficient on its first stage, when infrastructures are being built with investments, in long term, it would definitely do its cost.
Moreover, to reduce the first cost and operation expenses, experts from different countries and industries are working hard to find the way. That is the reason ESG governance is gaining its popularity in Korea.

Thank you for putting effort writing our designated article.

Best,

Joon
Posted 05-09-2021 22:56