Overconsumption, globalised supply chains and the Covid-19 crisis

We must build back more resilient, just societies that consume within ecological limits.

https://www.socialeurope.eu/overconsumption-globalised-supply-chains-and-the-covid-19-crisis

The immediate response to the Covid-19 crisis must continue to be saving lives, preventing the further spread of the virus and showing human solidarity and compassion—in particular with the most vulnerable and with essential workers. Meanwhile, the spectre of unprecedented recession looms. And voices from some political parties and industry bodies, such as the car and plastics lobbies, are calling for environmental policies to be scaled back or scrapped. This would be a grave mistake—and would leave us even more vulnerable to future crises.

In March, just before the lockdowns began in earnest in many places, the European Commission launched its new Circular Economy Action Plan. The plan is a package of 35 initiatives which aim to improve how we design products and minimise waste. Many of these represent genuine progress, yet the plan stopped short of committing to reduce the overall amount of resources consumed within the European Union. As such, it fails to get to the heart of what a circular economy should and must be—ensuring that the quantity of resources that go into our economy is reduced to within ecological limits.

Three planets

The EU currently consumes as if we had almost three planets available to produce the resources we use and absorb the waste we produce, which in turn is driving the climate and biodiversity crises. Many of our resources also come from outside the bloc, and thus our economy relies on highly globalised supply chains. Growth-led demand for natural resources has been shown to lead to the transmission of deadly viruses to humans. In January David Quammen wrote in the New York Times:



The EU’s overconsumption contributes in creating exactly these conditions for viruses to make the jump to human populations. Our demand for natural resources, such as through mining for our electronics and petrochemical drilling for plastics, is tearing into forests worldwide. Globally, resource extraction and processing accounts for more than 90 per cent of global biodiversity loss.

Spreading the virus.........

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