Jessika Richter
Associate senior lecturer
Towards a Circular Economy with Environmental Product Policy : Considering dynamics in closing and slowing material loops for lighting products
Author
Summary, in English
A theory-based evaluation was used to assess the performance of extended producer responsibility (EPR) policies for lighting products in the Nordic countries. While the WEEE systems were generally performing well, there were issues identified, including the downcycling and loss of many recycled materials and lack of ecodesign incentives. The research also found that the requirements of the WEEE Directive were a key enabler for closing loops for rare earth elements (REE) from lighting products, but that the recycling efforts in the EU face challenges with economic feasibility and complex transactions in the value chain.
The lifetimes of LED lighting products were examined from a consumer perspective through a life cycle cost analysis and an environmental perspective with life cycle assessment. From a consumer perspective, lifetimes much longer than the mandatory Ecodesign minimums were found to be optimal for LED products on the Swedish market. From an environmental perspective, longer lifetimes for LED lighting products can result in trade-offs between energy/climate impacts and resource depletion/toxicity impacts. However, in the context of a less carbon-intensive electricity mix, these trade-offs are minimised. The same is true if the product’s energy efficiency improvements slow or mature.
The research suggested that more specific product and material targets in the WEEE Directive could be appropriate. While the findings indicated that more stringent mandatory lifetime requirements in the Ecodesign Directive may not be appropriate for products with rapid technological developments, dynamic trade-offs should be explicitly recognised in policy mixes and accounted for in policy planning.
Department/s
- The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics
Publishing year
2019-12-13
Language
English
Full text
Document type
Dissertation
Publisher
Lund University
Topic
- Environmental Management
Keywords
- extended producer responsibility
- Circular Economy
- critical materials
- Policy Evaluation
- product lifetime
- lamps
- lighting products
- WEEE
- Product Policy
- ecodesign
Status
Published
Project
- Policy Instruments and business models for closed material loops
- Circular Economy: capturing value in waste through extended producer responsibility policies
- Lighting Metropolis
- Promoting ecodesign for advancement of innovation, competiveness and environmental improvements: assessing the potential of the Ecodesign Directive in a dynamic setting.
Supervisor
- Thomas Lindhqvist
- Naoko Tojo
- Carl Dalhammar
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISBN: 978-91-87357-50-3
- ISBN: 978-91-87357-51-0
Defence date
13 December 2019
Defence time
01:15
Defence place
Aula, International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics, Tegnérsplatsen 4, Lund University, Faculty of Engineering LTH, Lund
Opponent
- Mette Alberg Mosgaard (Doctor)