The Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) is non-profit created by the British government to promote resource efficiency. It promotes people buying less, wasting less, owning less, etc.
No doubt there's plenty of unnecessary consumption in the UK...we certainly don't have a monopoly on that vice. But some of the goals that WRAP is suggesting...
[WRAP] claims that overcoming our obsession with owning goods could be a "secret weapon" in meeting climate change targets. It has called for a fifth of all household spending, £148 billion out of an annual total of £732 billion, to be converted to renting by 2020.
In a report published today the watchdog calls for the transformation of a large part of the retail sector into a service industry specialising in renting goods, with each item used by many different people during its lifetime.
WRAP identifies five categories of goods suitable for renting: high-end clothing; glassware and tableware; tools and equipment for house and garden; vehicles; and telephone, audio and recreational equipment. On clothing, the report proposes that hiring should replace 10 per cent of the retail market within ten years.
10 percent? Beyond weddings, the occasional tux and high-end dress, what types of clothing are people supposed to rent? WRAP's CEO suggests evening dresses, bags, and shoes. But heck, a lot of that type of clothing goes out of style before it's worn out, whether purchased or rented.
The report, based on research by York University, calculates that better use of resources could deliver 10 per cent of the carbon dioxide savings that Britain has legally committed to making by 2020.
Shifting a fifth of household spending from purchasing to renting would cut emissions by about 2 per cent, or 13 million tonnes of CO2 a year, through a fall in manufacturing and lower consumption of raw materials.
A WRAP official said that there would be no net loss of jobs in Britain because most goods were manufactured overseas. He said that positions lost in retailing would be balanced by jobs gained in a greatly expanded rental industry. He also said that there would be additional greenhouse gas savings — not calculated in the report — from reducing the size of homes because people would not need as much storage space.
The report says that 20 per cent of the market for tools could shift from purchasing to hiring by 2020 and up to 90 per cent by 2050. On vehicles, it says renting could account for 20 per cent of the market by 2020 and 50 to 90 per cent by 2050.
Up to 90 percent, but as low as what? I'm sick of advocates--and reporters--who give partial information.
Okay...most of the goods in question are manufactured overseas, from raw materials mined and grown overseas. Thus, that's where most of the emission reductions take place...which is fine, but it doesn't help with the EU's emission reduction goals. Neither does reducing shipping...yet.
If only the rich and the rest of the politicians would lead the way on unnecessary consumption... Same goes for climate change.
The report identifies £143 billion of annual expenditure on goods that could have been used for longer. It says that clothing is only being used, on average, for 66 per cent of its potential lifespan. Using items for their full lifespan would save consumers £47 billion a year, it claims.
Too bad the authors of this bold report lost their nerve when it comes to the unnecessary consumption driven by obesity. For instance, how much more clothing would be worn out if adults didn't outgrow it?
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