What is a Circular Economy in Appalachia?

Thursday, May 22

What is Climate Change? 

You’ve heard it before—our climate is changing, bringing with it stronger storms, rising seas, and growing disruption. But the reason behind climate change might be a less familiar story…

Greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, and ozone, to name a few) are naturally in our planet’s atmosphere. You can think of them as a blanket around our planet that maintains the conditions for life to thrive. When energy from the sun reaches the planet as sunlight, some of it is naturally reflected back into space, while our greenhouse gas blanket traps some of this energy on Earth, keeping the planet warm enough to sustain life. When too many greenhouse gases are released into the air, the atmosphere’s natural balance is disrupted, causing our greenhouse gas blanket to trap in too much heat, causing increased warning on a global scale. 

Nine Planetary Boundaries Framework For the purposes of this blog, understanding each of the boundaries is not necessary– simply understanding the concept of the boundaries is sufficient. If you would like to learn more, you can visit the Stockholm Research Centre website and/or read the “Earth beyond six of nine planetary boundaries” research article. 

First proposed by scientists in 2009, the Nine Planetary Boundaries framework identifies nine critical limits within which humanity can operate without causing irreversible environmental damage. These Boundaries are:

1. Climate Change
2. Biodiversity Loss
3. Biogeochemical Flows
4. Ocean Acidification
5. Land-Use Change
6. Freshwater Use
7. Atmospheric Aerosol Loading
8. Ozone Layer Depletion
9. Chemical Pollution

As a holistic approach, the Nine Planetary Boundaries emphasizes the interconnected nature of environmental issues. By respecting these boundaries and staying within their limits, we can work toward a stable Earth system and mitigate human impact on the climate. Unfortunately in 2023, scientists at the Stockholm Resilience Centre mapped out the Nine Planetary Boundaries and found that six of the nine boundaries have been surpassed due to human activity. Now more than ever it is key that we address our impact on the planet. 

Azote for Stockholm Resilience Centre, based on analysis in Richardson et al 2023.

The diagram segments each of the nine planetary boundaries around a central circle representing Earth. The green areas within this inner circle indicate the safe operating space for humanity. For instance, ocean acidification remains within safe boundaries, as shown by the green color in its segment. When a boundary is exceeded—meaning environmental limits have been surpassed—the diagram displays orange and red to indicate increasing risk. For example, land-system change has breached its safe limit, reflected in its orange-red coloring. Some boundaries are further divided into subcategories. This is illustrated in the freshwater change segment, which includes both “blue water” (surface and groundwater) and “green water” (soil moisture) components.

– Read how the circular economy can help us stay within the planetary boundaries!

Impact of People on Environment

Human activities are responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the planet. As shown in the EPA’s diagram below, the transportation, industrial, residential and commercial sectors are large contributors to greenhouse gas emissions within the United States. These emissions largely come from burning fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and petroleum for power generation and transportation. Despite ongoing research that confirms the dangers of greenhouse gas emissions and their role in climate change, the U.S. has only managed to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 3% since 1990 according to the EPA. In order to reduce the risks of climate change, circular practices will be necessary to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions further. 

United States Environmental Protection Agency. “Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Overview.” Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Environmental Protection Agency, 2025, www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions.

Linear and Circular Economic Models

Our current linear economic model, also referred to as the “take-make-waste economy,” turns raw materials into products and ships them around the world where they are used and eventually discarded as waste. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation explains that in a linear system, “products and materials are generally not used to their full potential.” Because products and materials only move through the system in one direction, ultimately our linear economic system is a “polluting system that degrades natural systems and is the driver of global challenges, including climate change and biodiversity loss.”

What might a better system look like? We believe it is the circular economy. 

At its core, a circular economic system avoids the cycle ending at waste, and instead reintegrates materials and products back into the system as inputs. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation explains that “in a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes like maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling, and composting.” 

A “circular” economic model is emerging in the mainstream: one that relies on smart design choices to minimize shipping, eliminate waste, and circulate materials and products at their highest value for as long as possible. As more people, businesses, and governments begin adopting circular practices, it is important to acknowledge that circularity is nothing new, and has been a way of life for millennia for Indigenous people across the globe. 

Circularity is nature’s way! Just think about it – 

• Composting: When you compost your food scraps, you’re tapping into nature’s simple, full-circle process of nutrient recycling. In forests and gardens, leftover plant matter breaks down into rich soil, which in turn helps new plants (and food) to grow!
• The Water Cycle: Every time you turn on the tap or get caught in the rain, you’re part of the Earth’s oldest recycling system. Even the water in your morning coffee has been through mountains, clouds, rivers, plants, and maybe even a dinosaur or two. Water is an example of reuse and renewal– it evaporates, condenses, falls as rain, and restarts the cycle once again. 
• Waste as a Resource: Have you ever seen a bird using twigs, string, or even your pet’s hair to build a nest? In nature, nothing is wasted– it is upcycled! “Wastes” such as dead leaves, shed feathers, and fallen twigs are repurposed into many things, such as bird nests and insect homes, or broken down into soil nutrients.

The circular economy can take many forms, such as: 

• Designing and using compostable packaging from biomaterials, instead of single-use plastics
• Offering products as “services” with take-back programs– at the end of a product’s use the company takes back the item for repurposing, refurbishing, or recycling, and provides the customer with a new product. 
• Retrofitting an old mill for a new use, instead of tearing the old building down and constructing a new one.
• Collecting used materials and transforming them into new products, such as the Industrial Common’s collaboration with Smartwool to collect and use old socks to make brand-new ones. 
• Co-locating different businesses or industries allows them to use each other’s waste streams—for example, capturing waste heat from one facility and using it as an input in another process.

Appalachian Region

Photo Credit: Sionainn Rudek at Blue Rock Station in Philo, OH

The Appalachian region is widely recognized as one of the most ecologically resilient and biodiverse places on planet Earth. Teeming with vast forests, rich agricultural lands, and abundant mineral resources, manufacturers have their pick of readily available natural resources. Appalachia’s proximity to many urban centers makes its products highly attractive to project teams looking for locally sourced, lower-carbon materials and products. And it’s not only geography– Appalachia has a long-standing tradition of resourcefulness, repair, and stewardship that align with circular economy principles. Whether it be through reclaiming shuttered coal plants or revitalizing local supply chains, the region is well-positioned to lead the nation in the transition to a circular economy. Strong community networks, a skilled workforce, and a legacy of repurposing, repairing, and reimagining all contribute to Appalachia’s ability to design systems where wastes become inputs, value remains local, and economic development goes hand-in-hand with ecological restoration. 

“The ReUse Corridor, founded and co-led by Coalfield Development, is a coalition of businesses, individuals, and communities working across central Appalachia to create jobs, reduce waste, and strengthen regional economies through smarter material use. To this end, the ReUse Corridor works to connect regional material generators, collectors, processors, and manufacturers, prioritizes existing road network use for material logistics, and reuses, repurposes, and recycles a wide variety of materials such as electronics, plastics, metals, cardboard, textiles, household consumables, and construction and deconstruction debris.

• If you would like to read their Strategic Plan, click here.
• If you would like to become a member of the ReUse Corridor, click here.

If you would like to contact the ReUse Corridor, you can do so by emailing Baleigh Epperly, Associate Director of Appalachian Reuse Hub: [email protected]“