Our material consumption across the world has been constantly growing and brings with it a correspondingly increased consumption of raw materials. Yet the concentrated deposits of such materials run the risk of being quickly exhausted and the inevitable recourse to less dense reserves is itself very expensive, particularly in energy terms. There are many decision-makers and experts who imagine that the more systematic recycling of these materials would make it possible to appreciably reduce our need for virgin materials.
But, as François Grosse shows here, this is an illusion, since we do not produce enough waste. This is the case first and foremost because our levels of consumption in the past were much lower than they are in the present. Second, we live not in throwaway societies, but accumulative ones… So recycling is not a solution. We have instead to move towards a circular economy, for which there are two preconditions: first, reducing the pace of growth of our material goods to reduce the call we make on raw materials; second, insisting that the manufacture of new products and equipment consists of at least 80% recycled material. François Grosse’s demonstration, copiously illustrated with examples, reveals the extent of the challenge and the radical change required to achieve genuinely sustainable development.
