Designing for Zero Waste

Introduction

Since the Industrial Revolution, the dominant mode of production has been ‘linear’ and based on a pattern of ‘take-make-consume-dispose’. However, a paradigm shift is underway across many parts of the world to shift from a linear to ‘circular economy’. The circular economy is a model of production and consumption which involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling materials to extend the life cycles of products for as long as possible. A circular economic system disconnects natural resource use and environmental impacts from economic activity by designing waste and pollution out of the economic model. This transformation requires a much stronger commitment to sustainable management of waste and resources.

On Monday, 29 November 2021, the IIEA was delighted to welcome Clare Miflin, Development Lead of the Zero Waste Design Guidelines for New York City. This event was part of the Environmental Resilience lecture series, co-organised by the IIEA and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In her address, Ms Miflin argued that sustainable, prosperous and liveable cities of the future will need to be ‘zero waste’. She also outlined the important role that design of the built environment plays in the transition away from a linear economy and towards a circular economy.  

Defining Zero Waste

The Zero Waste International Alliance defines zero waste as: “the conservation of all resources by means of responsible production, consumption, reuse, and recovery of products, packaging, and materials without burning and with no discharges to land, water, or air that threaten the environment or human health.”

Communities and businesses that divert 90% of their waste from landfills, incinerators and the environment are considered ‘zero waste’. A move to a closed-loop system of production with a circular waste strategy would ease the overwhelming burden on Earth’s ecosystems, reduce levels of pollution, limit biodiversity loss, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

The move away from current waste disposal practices and towards a circular waste management framework will involve every element of the value chain. In her address to the IIEA, Ms Miflin focused on the role that design can play in altering patterns of consumption, use and disposal, and drew on her experience as development-lead of the Zero Waste Design Guidelines for New York City.

The Zero Waste Design Guidelines for New York City

In her address to the IIEA, Clare Miflin argued that waste is a design flaw and, as such, architects and urban planners involved in the design of the built environment have a crucial role to play in the design of the zero-waste city.

The Zero Waste Design Guidelines for New York City - developed in collaboration with the American Institute for Architecture NY, dozens of other stakeholders, and supported by the Rockefeller Foundation - operates as a toolkit for designers, building operators, and planners to dramatically reduce waste and work towards greater adoption of circular material flows. Although New York City is the geographic focus of these guidelines, many of the strategies can be applied to other cities.

The guidelines present design solutions ranging from macro-level suggestions for circular material loops to micro-level details such as the optimal shape of container openings for waste in recycling stations.[1] They also include an interactive waste calculator which gives designers a volume of waste to plan for in the design of a building, and recommends equipment that can be used to reduce that volume.

In her address, Ms Miflin highlighted that city governments often fail to consider the full system impacts of waste, including the environmental effects of transporting large volumes of materials to landfills and the overall cost of relying on a linear waste model – New York City spends approximately $1 billion per year managing solid waste. 

Ms Miflin argued that a zero waste framework requires an integrated approach with architects, planners and building operators working in collaboration to design a coherent system in which materials are easily separated, handled, and ultimately reused, fixed, or recycled into compost and energy.

Ecosystems recycle materials indefinitely in circular loops, but the human-designed linear mode of production and consumption discards 99% of the materials extracted from the earth within six months. To transform waste into a regenerative resource requires a design-led approach to improve a city’s system of material flows. In her remarks to the IIEA, Ms Miflin highlighted that New York City is currently undergoing such a transformation, with the aim of substantially reducing cumulative waste and sending zero waste to landfills by 2030.   

The EU’s Waste Policy

In recent years, the generation of waste in the European Union has increased. Annual waste generation, from all economic activities in the Union, amounts to 2.5 billion tonnes, or 5 tonnes per capita a year. While the proportion of waste that is recycled has increased across the EU, the rate of progress has slowed over the last five year, and the total amount of waste recycled is still less than half of total waste generated. 

While the EU does not have an explicit ‘zero waste’ target, the amending Directive (2018) to the Directive on Landfill Waste (1999), sets a limit of 10% on the share of municipal waste that can be sent to landfill by 2035.

The Waste Framework Directive (2008) remains the EU’s overarching legal framework for treating and managing waste in the EU. It sets out measures to reduce the generation of waste and improve the treatment of waste in the Union.

In March 2020, the European Commission published its Circular Economy Action Plan 2.0 (CEAP 2.0), which is one of the main building blocks of Europe’s new agenda for sustainable growth. CEAP 2.0 proposed initiatives along the entire life cycle of products. focuses on production at the design stage. It seeks to ensure that as much waste as possible is prevented and that resources are regenerated and kept in the EU economy. European policymakers are in the process of reappraising several EU waste laws in order to transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient, and climate neutral continent.

In 2021, the Commission advanced several initiatives under the CEAP 2.0. In October 2021, it adopted a proposal to tighten limits on harmful chemicals in waste and to prevent them from re-entering the economy. Furthermore, in November 2021, the Commission also adopted a proposal to revise the Regulation on waste shipments. Commissioner Sinkevičius argued that this proposal will strengthen the Union’s zero-pollution ambitions, provide stronger rules on waste exports, and create more efficient system for the circulation of waste as a resource.

At EU level, the legislative focus on circular economy and sustainable waste initiatives is set to continue. In the first quarter of 2022, it is expected that the Commission will propose a revision to the Ecodesign Directive (2009), review the requirements of packaging and packaging waste, publish a strategy for sustainable textiles, and adopt a proposal to empower consumers in the green transition.

Ireland’s Waste Policy

Ireland has made progress in reducing the amount of municipal waste sent to landfills between 2010-2019 from 55% to 15%, but will need to accelerate such efforts to comply with EU standards. In September 2020, the Irish Government introduced the Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy. It will drive Ireland’s delivery on national targets under EU legislation. The Action Plan shifts focus away from waste disposal and towards the preservation of resources by creating a circular economy.

 The Irish Government’s Waste Action Plan has five key areas of focus:

1. Shift the focus away from waste disposal and treatment to ensure that materials and products remain in productive use.
2. Make producers environmentally accountable for the products they place on the market.
3. Ensure that measures support sustainable economic models.
4. Harness the reach and influence of all sectors in the economy.
5. Support clear and robust institutional arrangements for the waste sector, including through a strengthened role for local authorities.

Coherence

Policy coherence, at the EU and national level will be essential to modify the economic system from an unsustainable linear economy to a circular economic future. The decoupling of waste generation from economic growth will require considerable collaboration across the whole value chain. Success will depend on the input of architects, urban planners, and those who contribute to the structures of the built environment, and who plan for material waste flows in cities. 

This paradigm shift to an ecologically regenerative future facilitates top-down, middle-out and bottom-up opportunities for sustainable growth and waste reduction possibilities. Inclusive and innovative approaches to planning and design will be essential inputs for policymakers to eliminate waste from the production cycle while simultaneously promoting resource-efficient growth, green job opportunities and maintaining public support for this transformation.