Belgium, on its way towards a circular economy

“We know that we cannot continue to use resources as if they were unlimited. We must think about the recycling of materials, the decreasing of our resources use, and we must concretely support the valorisation of materials,” said Willy Borsus, Vice-President of the Belgian Walloon Region.

Worldwide material consumption has expanded rapidly, as has material footprint per capita. In 1990, some 8.1 tonnes of natural resources were used to satisfy a person’s need, while in 2017, almost 12.2 tonnes of resources were extracted per person.

To ensure that current material needs do not lead to the overextraction of resources or to the degradation of environmental resources, we need to act urgently to improve resource efficiency, reduce waste, and mainstream sustainability practices across all sectors of the economy.

CONTINUE READING ON: unenvironment.org