03 Challenges and opportunities in LAC
The LAC transition to a circular economy relies on three priority sectors – mining, waste management and the bioeconomy. Each must adapt to contend with the challenges and opportunities ahead.
Extractives and mining
The extractive industries play an important role in the economies of many LAC countries. For instance, in both Ecuador and Colombia, petroleum oils, oils from bituminous materials and crude oil accounted for approximately 30 per cent of export revenues in 2017.96 Similarly, the mining sector plays a prominent role in the economies of Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guyana and Peru. Brazil has the fourth largest mining sector in the world and is a global player due to its exports of niobium (for which it is the world’s leading exporter), iron ore (3rd), manganese (5th), tantalum (2nd), graphite (3rd) and bauxite (3rd).97
Several of the technologies necessary for the low-carbon transition require a range of base and precious metals including copper, lithium, gold, uranium, rare earth metals, silver and zinc.98 According to a World Bank report, and under the International Energy Agency’s 2°C scenario,99 production of graphite, lithium and cobalt will need to increase globally by more than 450 per cent by 2050 from 2018 levels to meet demand from energy storage technologies.100 At present, demand for the majority of these resources exceeds the amounts that can be obtained through recycling and urban mining (the process of reclaiming raw materials from spent products, buildings and waste).101 Primary extraction of these resources is therefore likely to continue for some time yet.
In the long term, material scarcity and the transition to a circular economy – with its emphasis on reuse, sharing, prolonged use and recycling – is expected to reduce the need for extraction of primary materials.
In the long term, however, material scarcity and the transition to a circular economy – with its emphasis on reuse, sharing, prolonged use and recycling – is expected to reduce the need for extraction of primary materials.102 This would potentially have negative implications for workers, communities, regions and countries that are specialized in this economic activity.103 Of the top 50 countries that rely on extractives, 64 per cent are classified as low and middle-income countries, and these states stand to lose disproportionately from a circular economy transition, compared to the rest of the world.104 This assertion is in line with the Chatham House survey results, in which over 40 per cent of respondents believed that extractive industries would face the biggest challenges in the circular economy transition in the LAC region, due to reduced demand for some primary materials and the impact of predicted regulatory limitations that would be imposed on industries relying on linear business models. The pace at which major economic powers such as the EU and China move towards circular economies is likely to accelerate this scenario. For example, if China were to develop a circular economy for steel, this would potentially prove problematic for countries such as Brazil that are currently suppliers and exporters of iron ore.105
The circular economy model offers an opportunity to reduce the significant environmental and social impacts of the extractives and mining sector across the LAC region. Mining activities are highly water- and energy-intensive. Furthermore, the use of toxic substances in the extraction of minerals and metals – such as the use of mercury in gold mining – has serious health implications for workers and local communities,106 due to the contamination of soils and water supplies by mining residues (known as tailings) containing these hazardous substances.107 Land clearance and land-use change to enable extractive activities contributes in many cases to deforestation, habitat loss, erosion and sedimentation.108 The 2019 disaster at the Córrego do Feijãoir mine near Brumadinho, Brazil, where a tailings dam collapsed, killing 270 people and destroying forest land and polluting a nearby river, provides an example of the most catastrophic, worst-case consequences of mining activities.109 The severe environmental, social and health consequences of badly managed mining activities are a major cause of increasing public resistance to new mining projects. Such impacts, coupled with the increased incidence of illegal mining activities and the frequent failure of mining companies to seek approval from local communities for new extractive projects, have led to protests and social unrest across many LAC countries, which in turn have entailed delays to a number of proposed projects.110 The implementation of inclusive and just natural resource and environmental governance systems, together with sustainable and circular principles, when planning and designing mining operations can maintain the sector’s operating mandate in the LAC region.111
Box 6. Emergent circular economy approaches in Chile’s mining sector
Chile holds 30 per cent of the world’s copper reserves and is responsible for one-third of global production. Mining has been instrumental to Chile’s sustained economic development: the International Copper Association estimates that for every $100 contributed by mining to the Chilean economy, at least another $36 is generated indirectly,112 and salaries in mining regions are between 80–110 per cent higher than regional averages.113 However, jobs are now coming under pressure, as the mining sector faces rising production costs: the gradual exhaustion of surface deposits of high-grade ore has led companies to shift towards using machinery to access ore of a similar quality through underground tunnels.114 The copper-mining sector is also a significant and growing consumer of water and energy: it is anticipated that its water consumption will increase by 55 per cent over 2018 levels by 2029,115 while by 2026 its demand for energy will increase by 53 per cent.116 In addition, Chile’s mining sector produces 1.6 million tonnes of tailings every single day.117
In the context of Chile’s commitment to become carbon-neutral by 2050, the government’s efforts to produce a national circular economy roadmap, and increasing copper mining production costs, the mining sector is focusing on innovation, technology and new methods of production. New government policies and public–private partnerships have emerged in response to the key challenges.
In 2019, the Chilean government agreed a new tailings clean-up rule, which requires companies applying for permits for new mining projects to address some of the 170 documented abandoned tailings in the country, as a compensation measure to offset any environmental impacts of their own proposed projects.118 In addition, in 2019, a new platform was launched to provide information to the public about tailings management: it was also intended to act as an innovation exchange and repository for tailings research.119 CORFO, the national development agency, launched a mining programme in 2017, and the public–private partnerships Expande and Alta Ley were created to explore innovation in the mining sector.
CORFO’s mining programme is providing $5.9 million in financing for the development of hydrogen-powered mining trucks, as well as supporting the development of solar power plants in the Atacama desert to provide renewable energy for mining activities.120 CORFO has also called for national and international companies to create value-added solutions for the lithium produced by the domestic supplier Sociedad Química y Minera (SQM), whereby SQM must reserve a percentage of its lithium for delivery to Chilean-based manufacturers, who can then develop products such as lithium cathode materials and lithium-ion batteries. The scheme prioritizes producers who promote a circular economy, as well as the development of human capital.121 While it is unclear whether this initiative is to form part of Chile’s central circular economy strategy, it could be a first step in a process of moving from a mainly resource-exporting model to one in which higher-value products are developed within the domestic economy.
In another progressive move, the public–private partnership Alta Ley is supporting an innovation project led by Codelco Tech, a subsidiary of the state-owned Codelco copper mining corporation, to identify the precise concentrations of certain minerals considered to have future importance (such as germanium, gallium and tungsten) within existing tailings, and to establish a process that makes their extraction profitable.122 This could offset losses in income resulting from the exhaustion of easily accessible high-grade ores.
Mining and metals companies operating on a business-as-usual basis in the LAC region place themselves at risk of being overtaken and left behind by those innovative companies that are addressing the social and environmental impacts of their activities. Such companies are responding to the circular economy transition by updating and diversifying their processes – coordinating upstream and downstream activities to recover precious materials in the most cost-effective way or planning to supplant traditional primary materials completely. Extending the lifetime of products and resources by anticipating and planning for future applications will become the norm in designing products and supply chains. Mining and metals companies will need to become much more engaged with downstream users of their materials to stay competitive in the circular economy.123
Furthermore, as the demand for high-tech products increases and the availability of strategic or critical raw materials shrinks over the longer term, advanced e-waste recycling and urban mining are emerging as important economic activities that can ensure both the supply of secondary resources and, under proper conditions, a source of decent work for waste pickers. In 2016, countries in the LAC region generated an estimated 4.2 million tonnes of e-waste. Within the region, Brazil is the largest generator of such waste, producing 1.5 million tonnes per year; followed by Mexico (1 million tonnes), and then Argentina (400,000 tonnes) in third place.124 These statistics place Brazil in a strategic position to develop urban mining, given the existence within the region of a relatively strong legal framework related to e-waste management. Circular manufacturing of electronics – in particular, designing for disassembly – will support urban mining for e-waste. These business models can also be interpreted as an economic solution for social and environmental issues resulting from unsustainable e-waste management.
Box 7. E-waste management and urban mining in Argentina
UNIDO is currently implementing a project to strengthen national initiatives and regional cooperation around management of e-waste in the LAC region, financed by the GEF.125 One of the studies carried out by the International Labour Organization (ILO), as part of the project, has shown that activities surrounding the collection, treatment, waste disposal and material recovery of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) could directly generate 1,200 jobs in Argentina, with a further 33,000 positions created in the repair sector as a whole.126 However, the study also found that WEEE recycling does not yet reach 2 per cent of total waste generation in Argentina. The low volume and discontinuous supply of materials limit growth for the sector, not just in Argentina, but in other countries across the region. To overcome this obstacle, the project recommends moving towards the integration of different processes at a regional level, evaluating the feasibility of specialization according to the installed capacities and technical experience in different LAC countries. The study in Argentina also highlighted the need to develop national standards on WEEE management criteria where these do not already exist, and to adequately regulate EPR schemes.
Another way of addressing the negative impacts on countries that are heavily dependent on the extractives and mining sector, and of facilitating global cooperation, would be through new models of leasing metals and minerals. The mined minerals or the manufactured metals could be leased to overseas companies, while ownership would remain with the country of origin. The idea is that the resource, in whichever form, is leased for a certain period of time and then returned. A failure to return would necessitate the purchase at a premium price.127 This type of leasing mechanism, governed through a multilateral institution, would ensure the retention of long-term ownership of natural resources (and the benefits of such ownership) for countries in the Global South. It would also provide incentives for recycling and improved design of high-tech equipment and electronics. Other governance measures that could be undertaken at country level to ensure a just transition and resilience against the immediate impacts of a drop in demand for virgin materials would entail diverting revenues to a national fund or awarding direct cash transfers to affected communities and workers.
Municipal waste management and recycling
The LAC is the most urbanized region in the world with more than 80 per cent of its total population living in cities in 2018.128 The region’s cities and municipal governments are key players in the circular economy transition. Most cities face major challenges in dealing with municipal solid waste. The amount of waste generated in the region is expected to increase from 541,000 tonnes/day in 2014 to 670,000 tonnes/day by 2050.129 Currently, all countries in the region rely overwhelmingly on the use of land fill or illegal dumping as their main methods of final disposal. One important objective of circular economy transitions for cities across the LAC region should be to reduce the pollution burden of the urban poor – in particular, to support communities impacted by mismanaged waste.
In the LAC region, over 35,000 tonnes of waste is left uncollected every day, impacting over 40 million people – about 7 per cent of the population.
In the LAC region, over 35,000 tonnes of waste is left uncollected every day, impacting over 40 million people – about 7 per cent of the population – particularly those living in marginal areas, such as slums and informal settlements, and some rural areas. Recycling rates in LAC are still low – around 1–20 per cent – while approximately 90 per cent of municipal waste is either dumped or burned.130 Most recycling efforts in LAC countries focus on the high numbers of waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles generated in cities. There are many unofficial waste pickers who collect and separate this recyclable plastic material. However, even PET bottle recycling rates are low. In Brazil, only about 50 per cent of this material is recycled after use and about 17 per cent is mismanaged – dumped or openly burned; in Mexico, mismanagement accounts for at least 20 per cent of all PET bottles collected.131 While final disposal of waste has improved over the last decade, this will continue to be a challenge as the amount of waste generated increases, from 541,000 tonnes per day in 2014, to a projected 671,000 tonnes per day in 2050.132
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the collection of recyclables was interrupted in most cities and countries of the region and recycling rates have dropped. On the upside, big urban centers have seen a decrease in the volume of waste generated, in some cases significant reductions, for example, in the cases of Buenos Aires and Bogota the decrease is estimated to be about 34 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively.133 This is due to quarantine measures and the reduced number of people commuting to cities. These experiences offer an opportunity to turn around the previous growth in waste generation and re-design waste management systems in the post-COVID-19 recovery.
Sanitation, wastewater management and sewage sludge treatment are further challenges faced by cities across the region. About 490 million people – some 69 per cent of the region’s population, according to a 2019 report by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) – lack proper sanitation, and only about 20 per cent of industrial and residential wastewater is treated before being discharged.134 Especially in many small and medium-sized cities in the region, wastewater rarely goes through an adequate treatment process before being discharged, often into rivers and lakes. Adopting circular economy principles for the processing of wastewater to recover and reuse resources can transform sanitation from a costly service, in terms of public finance, to one that is self-sustaining and adds value to the economy.135 For example, the circular economy includes sustainable options for utilizing sewage sludge to generate energy and biosolids, and can address the problem of sludge management in the LAC region. Sludge has a high nutrient content and can be used to create safe forms of fertilizer through the use of anaerobic digesters and drying beds for composting. Fertilizers and recovered phosphorus can be employed to increase yields of agricultural crops.136
Box 8. Circular economy initiatives in major cities in LAC
Given the fragmented nature of waste management in LAC countries,137 several cities have launched their own circular economy plans, with the particular objective of tackling waste. For example, in 2019, the Mexico City municipal government announced an Action Plan for a Circular Economy, which aims to achieve zero waste through a range of strategic priorities: regulations to reduce the amount of packaging and the manufacture of single-use products; proper waste management processes and infrastructure; the creation of cooperatives and microenterprises specializing in waste management; and running zero-waste education campaigns.138 The Action Plan received an initial investment of 300 million pesos ($14 million).
In the Argentinian capital of Buenos Aires, the voluntary ‘Buenos Aires Produce más Limpio’ (Buenos Aires Produces Cleaner) scheme, launched in 2011, has encouraged cooperation between businesses and the city government and provides training to promote the uptake of technologies, processes, products and services that integrate environmental protection with economic and social development.139 Buenos Aires also launched a ‘Green City’ (Ciudad Verde) Plan in 2012, which established a base salary and formal working conditions for waste pickers. While this was successful in providing a basic income and benefits, it did not extend to all waste pickers. However, continued issues with waste management and the failure to meet zero-waste targets have led to new proposals to privatize the waste system in the city, causing concern about whether a privatized system will afford the same benefits to waste pickers. Similarly, the incineration of waste, which was banned under the city’s Zero Waste Law of 2005, is now permitted under reforms of the law in 2018.140
Other cities that have also introduced strategies based on the zero-waste principle include the Ecuadorian capital of Quito, which has developed a Master Plan for Comprehensive Waste Management, covering the period 2015–25.141 This followed previous initiatives in the capital, such as Quito a Reciclar (Quito Recycles), introduced in 2012.
Beyond waste management, the circular economy offers new potential for cities in the region to apply innovative urban agriculture, as well as more sustainable food production, construction and transportation systems. Examples from Manizales, in Colombia, and São Carlos, in Brazil, show that building integrated rooftop greenhouses, which exchange energy, collect rainwater and use organic waste for compost, can optimize both the energy efficiency of buildings and contribute to local food production.142 In the Cuban capital of Havana, the ‘organoponics’ system of urban agriculture – where food is grown using an organic substrate obtained from crop, animal and household waste – demonstrates how space and production can be optimized by growing food on building sites, vacant lots and roadsides, and in plots arranged in terraces on sloping land.143
Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT) are set to play a significant role in revolutionizing waste management. Semi-driverless collection vehicles and sensors are already used in waste collection systems. With the applications of robotics and AI, future waste treatment plants will be highly optimized facilities where no human will be in direct contact with waste. Almost all recyclables will be recovered and valorized. As with automation in other sectors, it will change the role of labour and job losses can be expected, especially for routine manual occupations, transport workers and operators.144
A just transition approach is particularly important to address social justice concerns surrounding waste management systems in current use across the region. At present, the informal sector plays a key role in municipal waste collection in many of its cities. The integration of waste pickers as partners in waste management schemes is considered key to building just, inclusive and liveable cities in the LAC region.145 However, as countries and cities seek to modernize their waste management and recycling processes, this group risks being marginalized.146 Respondents to the Chatham House survey highlighted the need for the inclusion of informal workers in the waste management sector as a priority for a just transition in the region. The extent to which such inclusion is successful will determine whether the informal sector stands to win or lose from the transition to a circular economy.
The term ‘waste picker’ was adopted at the First World Conference of Waste Pickers, held in Bogotá in 2008, and in 2013, the mayor of that city introduced a formal payment system for waste pickers in exchange for their services in collecting and transporting recyclable materials.147 Some countries, like Chile and Brazil, have made efforts to include informal waste pickers in new waste management systems. International development cooperation also supports the inclusion of informal sector workers. An example is the EcoVecindarios (Eco-communities) project (2009–18),148 led by the Bolivian branch of the Swiss Foundation for Technical Cooperation (Swisscontact). The project supported the inclusion of waste pickers into the solid waste management system of the city of Cochabamba, subsequently being extended to the cities of El Alto, La Paz, Santa Cruz and other municipalities.
In addition to an inclusive approach towards waste picker communities, other success factors for a just transition will include the remediation of existing open dumping sites, support for affected communities, and behaviour change campaigns. Proper segregation at source is also key to the success of many waste valorization programmes; many countries in the region have already implemented separate collection programmes for different types of waste for this precise reason.149
The bioeconomy – circular principles to ensure sustainability
Although the bioeconomy is a rather new term and concept, many countries across the region have adopted bioeconomy principles in the last two decades in a range of sectors, with different degrees of socio-economic and environmental impact. The bioeconomy offers many opportunities for countries in LAC, especially in the food and agricultural sector, but it also creates challenges. Opportunities arise because of the region’s broad biodiversity, genetic resources, diverse productive landscapes, and capacity to produce food and biomass.150 This is a commonly held view among respondents to the Chatham House survey, almost half of whom indicated that the food and agricultural sector will be among those to benefit most from the circular economy transition in the region. The main difficulty is in developing a sustainable bioeconomy that ensures protection of ecosystems and finds new pathways for more inclusive and equitable rural development.
The EU’s definition of the bioeconomy is as follows:
The bioeconomy covers all sectors and systems that rely on biological resources (animals, plants, micro-organisms and derived biomass, including organic waste). It includes and interlinks: land and marine ecosystems and the services they provide; all primary production sectors that use and produce biological resources (agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture); and all economic and industrial sectors that use biological resources and processes to produce food, feed, bio-based products, energy and services.151
So far, unlike in the EU, there is no consensus across LAC countries on a definition – or an agreed regional vision that could serve as a reference framework to guide the development of national policies and strategies. According to ECLAC, consensus on the bioeconomy in LAC could be built on the following ‘four pillars’:
- Promote sustainable development, taking Agenda 2030 as a frame of reference;
- Promote climate action, taking as a frame of reference the Paris Agreement and the proposals of the countries in their nationally determined contributions (NDCs);
- Promote social inclusion (e.g. family farming, youth and women, indigenous peoples) and the reduction of territorial development gaps within countries; and
- Promote innovation processes that contribute to the diversification of economies and generate new value chains, especially those that contribute to regional development, are in high-growth market segments, or offer opportunities to young people and women.152
Several countries in the region are taking a proactive stance on developing national bioeconomy plans and strategies. In 2016, Argentina launched its bioeconomy strategy document,153 and in 2018 the Argentinian government co-signed a letter of intent with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, which paved the way for the country to become a regional bioeconomy knowledge hub.154 In Ecuador, the bioeconomy is included in the national development plan and the Ecuadorian government is currently developing a national bioeconomy policy.155 Colombia has launched several strategies related to the bioeconomy since 2002, when it launched its National Plan on Continental and Marine Bioprospecting;156 the issue constitutes a core theme of Uruguay’s 2050 development strategy157 and Costa Rica’s National Decarbonization Plan for green economic development.158
Forests accounted for about 46 per cent of the region’s total land area in 2015 and the region is home to 57 per cent of the world’s primary forests, which are the most important forest resources in terms of biodiversity, conservation and climate.
Forest resources and biodiversity are crucial for the bioeconomy. Of the world’s 17 ‘mega diverse’ countries (as identified by the US non-governmental organization Conservation International in 1998), six are located in the LAC region: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela.159 Forests accounted for about 46 per cent of the region’s total land area in 2015160 and the region is home to 57 per cent of the world’s primary forests, which are the most important forest resources in terms of biodiversity, conservation and climate.161 With its diversity and abundance of natural resources, the region has great potential to further develop its bioeconomy. Areas of focus in the past two decades include the valorization of biodiversity resources in medicine and pharmaceuticals, ecological intensification of agriculture, biotechnology applications in sectors such as mining, food and beverage production, bio-refineries and ecosystem services.162
However, the bioeconomy is not sustainable by definition. In many bioeconomy strategies, biodiversity is seen as a resource, at the same time, however, there is an urgent need to halt and reverse biodiversity loss in the LAC region.163 Observers are concerned about large-scale bioenergy production competing with food production for space, with potentially serious consequences for food security and land degradation.164 Bio-based plastics represent another case in point. Bioplastics are not necessarily sustainable: there is little regulation of their manufacture, and there are multiple resource-intensive factors involved in production, including energy and water inputs. In addition, the current infrastructure does not create the necessary conditions for these bioplastics to break down. Promoting bioplastic production and consumption is therefore not a cost-effective strategy for climate change mitigation, if production is based on conventional feedstock, due to greenhouse gas emissions as a result of direct and indirect land-use change.165
While the LAC region should be able to develop its bioeconomy, this should not jeopardize its contributions to the region’s food security and biodiversity protection targets. Introducing circular economy principles into the bioeconomy can support the balancing of competing objectives, especially in the context of the SDGs. Circularity principles need to be a key element in achieving such convergence, not only for environmental reasons, but also on economic grounds.166 The alignment of circular economy and bioeconomy principles can improve resource and eco-efficiency, lowering greenhouse gas footprints and furthering the valorization of waste and production side streams.167 Examples of valorization include the utilization of organic waste streams from the agriculture, forestry, fishery, aquaculture, food and feed sectors. Furthermore, biodegradable products (e.g. natural fibres) can be safely returned to the nutrient cycle.
Box 9. The use of biomass resources in the bioeconomy
In LAC countries, biomass is a limited resource and in high demand in the bioeconomy. Therefore, it must be used in the most efficient way possible.168
Cascading the use of inputs from biomass and natural resources is an existing approach, aimed at maximizing the efficiency of biomass utilization, which strongly overlaps with the circular economy concept.169 There are three ways to cascade the use of biomass by time, value, and function.170 Cascading in time refers to the sequential use of biomass. Cascading in value prioritizes the highest value-added and most resource-efficient products. For example, bio-based products and industrial materials would be prioritized over bioenergy under this approach. Cascading in function optimizes production by creating different functional streams from one initial biomass stream (see Figure 1).
An example is provided by the multi-stage cascading use of wood resources, where wood is processed into a high-value product, such as furniture, which is subsequently used at least once (and ideally several times) in material form before disposal or recovery for energy purposes.171 Cascading biomass use reduces competition for biomass resources between different manufacturing sectors. As the raw materials are being used more efficiently, there is less pressure on forest ecosystems and on land use. To reach agreements among stakeholders – industry, indigenous peoples, local communities and consumers – about volumes and sequences of biomass use, it is important to ensure inclusive and effective involvement processes.
The use of cascading is a central component in the sustainable use of biomass and natural resources. The cascading principle is becoming highly relevant for the efficient use of lignocellulosic biomass (dried plant matter) for the manufacture of high-value products such as advanced fuels and bio-based materials.172 Industrial biorefineries can increase the variety of products that use biomass, with recent technological advances including the pre-treatment of biomass materials that would previously have been discarded as waste because of the difficulties in processing them.173
There is an undoubted opportunity to apply the cascade concept in a way that aligns industrial biorefinery operations with sustainability objectives for forests and biodiversity. The application of cascading methods for both forest residues and crop residues will therefore be important to ensure sustainability of the bioeconomy in the LAC region.
Figure 1. Three approaches to biomass cascading
— Source: Based on Odegard et al. (2012); Jarre et al. (2020).
Figure 1. Three approaches to biomass cascading
From an institutional perspective, a sustainable bioeconomy in LAC depends heavily on the governance of ecosystem services, which requires enhanced coordination and collaboration between different social actors, mediated by ecological functions and management regimes of natural resources.174 Furthermore, new legal frameworks are needed to regulate the sequence of biomass use, which is particularly challenging if economic or market demand aspects are not aligned with the cascading principles.175
Finally, considerations for just transitions in the bioeconomy are closely linked to emerging initiatives that combine the rights of indigenous peoples and forest protection. For example, Peru’s NDC includes the country’s participation in a REDD+176 initiative aiming to secure collective land rights for Peru’s Amazonian indigenous peoples alongside forest protection, implemented with local governments. In the Amarakaeri Communal Reserve, for example, the Amarakaeri community has protected nearly 1 million acres of forest, and, according to the World Resources Institute, deforestation rates in indigenous-held forestlands are lower than in other forested areas across the country.177
Box 10. The role of food and agriculture systems within the circular bioeconomy
The agricultural and food sector in LAC directly connects the bioeconomy and the circular economy. Moving towards a circular food system requires the implementation of practices and technologies that minimize the input of finite resources, encourage the use of regenerative ones, and prevent the leakage of natural resources such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and water from the food system.178
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), roughly one-third of the food that is produced for human consumption (with an estimated value of some $1.3 billion per year) is wasted and thus the resources are lost.179 While the transition to a circular bioeconomy would entail deploying regenerative agricultural practices, closing nutrient loops, and producing crops with minimum external inputs, it would also require the cessation of overproduction and of food waste. For agri-business worldwide, this could translate into a total income loss of around $750 billion per year.180 In many LAC countries, the agro-industry sectors – which stand to lose from the circular economy transition related to food and diets – constitute powerful lobbying groups.181
More importantly, in Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Peru, approximately 30 per cent of the population is employed in the agricultural sector,182 of which a large proportion are small holders. This section of the farming community could potentially experience lower incomes and conflicts over land use as a result of the bioeconomy, if large-scale plantations for the production of energy crops (used solely for combustion) and other bio-based commodities are expanded by agro-businesses, and stimulate land grabbing.183 Key considerations for a just transition to a circular bioeconomy include prioritizing farmers’ access to land, ownership of land and food sovereignty over land use for industrial crops and biomass production.
There is a long tradition in LAC countries of incorporating circularity into food systems, and of adopting agro-ecological systems that promote food sovereignty.184 However, achieving equitable food and nutrition security within populations will also require international action to create and maintain sustainable food systems. Circular bioeconomy strategies at national and international level, promoting sustainable regenerative agriculture, can help to address these issues faced by food and agriculture systems as other global challenges, from population pressure, climate change and water scarcity, continue to mount.185
Table 1. Sector opportunities and challenges of the circular economy in LAC
|
Sector |
Opportunities |
Challenges |
|---|---|---|
|
Extractives and mining |
|
|
|
Municipal waste management and recycling |
|
|
|
Circular bioeconomy |
|
|
Source: Compiled by the authors.
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97 Xavier, L., Giese, E., Ribeiro-Duthie, A. and Lins, F. (2019), ‘Sustainability and the circular economy: A theoretical approach focused on e-waste urban mining’, Resources Policy, 101467, doi:10.1016/j.resourpol.
2019.101467 (accessed 15 Jun. 2020).
98 Bartels, R., Drewell, Q. and Morrison, H. (2019), Mining new value from the circular economy, Accenture, https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/pdf-98/accenture-circular-economy-in-mining.pdf (accessed 27 Nov. 2019).
99 Scenario with at least a 50 per cent chance of limiting the average global temperature increase to 2°C: see International Energy Agency (2017), Energy Technology Perspectives 2017, Paris: IEA, https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-technology-perspectives-2017.
100 Hund, K., La Porta, D., Fabregas, T., Laing, T. and Drexhage, J. (2020), Minerals for Climate Action: The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, Climate-Smart Mining Initiative, Washington, DC: World Bank Publications, p. 11, http://pubdocs.worldbank.org/en/961711588875536384/Minerals-for-Climate-Action-The-Mineral-Intensity-
of-the-Clean-Energy-Transition.pdf (accessed 19 May 2020).
101 SINTEF (2020), ‘Urban Mining’, https://www.sintef.no/en/urban-mining/ (accessed 4 Aug. 2020); Bartels, Drewell and Morrison (2019), Mining new value from the circular economy.
102 International Labour Organization (2018), World Employment Social Outlook 2018: Greening with Jobs, Geneva: ILO, https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/–dgreports/–dcomm/–publ/documents/publication/wcms_628654.pdf (accessed 23 Nov. 2019); Circle Economy (2019), The Circularity Gap Report 2019, p.14, https://bfc732f7-80e9-4ba1-b429-7f76cf51627b.filesusr.com/ugd/ad6e59_ba1e4d16c64f44
fa94fbd8708eae8e34.pdf (accessed 23 Nov. 2019).
103 McCarthy, Dellink and Bibas (2018), ‘The Macroeconomics of the Circular Economy Transition: A Critical Review of Modelling Approaches’.
104 Ericsson, M. and Löf, O. (2019), ‘Mining’s contribution to national economies between 1996 and 2016’, Mineral Economics, 32: pp. 223–50, doi:10.1007/s13563-019-00191-6 (accessed 23 Nov. 2019).
105 Nechifor, V., Calzadilla, A., Bleischwitz, R., Winning, M., Tian, X. and Usubiaga, A. (2020), ‘Steel in a circular economy: Global implications of a green shift in China’, World Development, 127 (104775), doi:10.1016/j.world
dev.2019.104775 (accessed 23 Nov. 2019).
106 Long Sieber, N. and Brain, J. (2014), ‘Health Impact of Artisanal Gold Mining in Latin America: A Mining Boom Brings Risk from Mercury Contamination’, ReVista Harvard Review of Latin America, XIII (2): p. 66, https://revista.drclas.harvard.edu/book/health-impact-artisanal-gold-mining-latin-america (accessed 19 May 2020).
107 Harlow, D. E., Hurley, K., Fox, A., Vargas-Guerra, A. and Gibson, J. (2019), Small-scale & artisanal mining: Impacts on biodiversity in Latin America, The Cadmus Group LLC, USAID, https://www.land-links.org/wp-
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108 Ibid.
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