ABSTRACT
Chapter 7 on waste interconnects and overlaps with climate change (Chapter 5) and pollution (Chapter 6). Waste is set in the context of the linear take-make-waste paradigm of cradle-to-grave thinking which requires a rethink to circular cradle-to-cradle models. Waste is defined as a resource in the wrong place, which increases costs while adding no value to businesses. Major sources of industrial waste include construction, mining and quarrying, manufacturing, as opposed to household waste. Other types of waste are highlighted, such as e-waste, hazardous and nuclear waste, plastic and packaging as well as food waste before unpacking their environmental impact. Waste treatment and management is based on the waste hierarchy of prevention, reduction, reuse, recycling (“3Rs”), recovery and disposal. The business impact in terms of cause and effect follows before regulatory responses at various levels (global, regional, national, local) are emphasised in the form of targets, bans and extended producer responsibility. Internal opportunities to minimise waste include using waste as a resource, industrial symbiosis, dematerialisation, designing products with their end of life in mind and aiming for zero waste. External opportunities include moving away from planned or built-in obsolescence, collaborating with suppliers, and waste as a business model, illustrated by examples.
