Comment la circularité peut contribuer à la réduction des émissions au Canada

The report argues that Canada cannot reach its 2050 net-zero goals through energy transitions alone, as material extraction and processing account for a significant portion of global emissions. It identifies key opportunities in the steel, cement, plastics, and organic waste sectors, emphasizing that reducing primary demand and extending product lifespans offer greater emission reductions than recycling alone. The document highlights the lack of comprehensive national circularity plans in Canada compared to leaders like Japan and the EU, and recommends implementing digital product passports, carbon pricing, and updated building codes to accelerate the transition.

• Material handling and use are responsible for 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions, meaning energy transitions and carbon capture alone cannot fully address climate goals.
• The Ellen MacArthur Foundation suggests that applying circular strategies to five key areas—cement, aluminum, steel, plastics, and food—could eliminate nearly half of the remaining emissions from goods production by 2050, totaling 9.3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
• In Canada, the economy remains primarily linear; for instance, in 2016, only 9% of plastic waste was recycled, while 86% was sent to landfills.
• Reducing primary material demand and extending product lifespans generally yield higher emission reductions than downstream recovery and recycling activities.
• The steel sector can significantly reduce emissions through the use of scrap; recovery steel can divide emissions by four using standard practices, and by twenty if low-carbon electricity is used and fossil fuel preheating is abandoned.
• In the construction sector, prioritizing the dismantling of buildings over demolition could reduce emissions by 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year in Canada and reduce waste volumes by 2.5 million tonnes.
• The 'rebound effect' is a significant risk where circularity measures, such as extending the life of a product, may lead to the continued use of energy-inefficient older models, potentially offsetting emission gains.
• Canada lacks comprehensive national circularity plans and exhaustive material flow tracking, trailing behind the European Union's structured approach and the Japanese cultural commitment to resource maximization.
• The transition to green energy will increase demand for critical metals (copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt), making the recovery of these materials from waste essential to avoid increased environmental impacts from new mining.
• Digital product passports, using QR codes or RFID tags, are proposed as a solution to the current lack of accurate material composition data, which hinders efficient sorting and recycling of textiles and electronics.

APA

Cundiff, B., Trottier-Chi, C., Smith, R., Beck, M., & Bataille, C. (2023). Comment la circularité peut contribuer à la réduction des émissions au Canada. Canadian Climate Institute. https://institutclimatique.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/comment-circularite-contribuer-reduction-emissions-canada.pdf

Chicago

Cundiff, Brad, Calvin Trottier-Chi, Rick Smith, Marisa Beck, and Chris Bataille. Comment la circularité peut contribuer à la réduction des émissions au Canada. Canadian Climate Institute, 2023. https://institutclimatique.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/comment-circularite-contribuer-reduction-emissions-canada.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cundiff |first1=Brad |last2=Trottier-Chi |first2=Calvin |last3=Smith |first3=Rick |last4=Beck |first4=Marisa |last5=Bataille |first5=Chris |title=Comment la circularité peut contribuer à la réduction des émissions au Canada |publisher=Canadian Climate Institute |date=March 2023 |url=https://institutclimatique.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/comment-circularite-contribuer-reduction-emissions-canada.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cundiff2023comment, author = {Cundiff, Brad and Trottier-Chi, Calvin and Smith, Rick and Beck, Marisa and Bataille, Chris}, title = {{Comment la circularité peut contribuer à la réduction des émissions au Canada}}, institution = {Canadian Climate Institute}, year = {2023}, month = mar, url = {https://institutclimatique.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/comment-circularite-contribuer-reduction-emissions-canada.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }