A coalition bringing together consumer associations, environmental NGOs, but also economic players, met in Bern on Monday to promote the circular economy on a large scale in Switzerland.
This coalition called “Long live our objects” and made up of 14 organisations, has set itself the objective of combating pollution and waste by promoting the longevity of objects.
Last year, 97% of respondents to a survey by the Alliance of Consumer Organizations said that they had had to throw away an object that was still in good condition at least once, simply because the cost of the repair was too high or the parts spare parts were not available.
A real aberration at a time when resources should be preserved, believe the member organizations of the coalition.
According to Joëlle Hérin, consumption and circular economy expert for Greenpeace, the responsibility is shared: “On the one hand, there are manufacturers who manufacture objects that cannot be repaired or whose spare parts are too expensive. On the other hand, there is a lack of framework conditions to facilitate the repair and longevity of the products”, she said at 7:30 p.m. from RTS.
Non-removable parts
Repairman Alvar Sanchez knows this. An employee of the Petit Atelier in Geneva, he fears that he will soon no longer be able to repair objects: “There are a lot more electronics, even in a toaster which does not need them. The parts are not removable, with screws one-way. We have to break part of the object in order to be able to repair it”, he laments.
When the object can be repaired, it is often the cost of the repair or the complexity of the process compared to buying new, which are prohibitive. Or it is the technological incompatibility or the absence of software updates that make the devices unusable.
According to a survey by the French-speaking Federation of Consumers (FRC), a member of the coalition, most devices under warranty brought back to the store because of a repairable failure are generally not examined and simply thrown away.
Badly rated Switzerland
As a result, the Swiss accumulate a lot of waste. Between 1990 and 2019, the quantity of urban waste increased by 100 kg per person, to reach 703 kg per inhabitant and per year, in particular due to the good economic situation during this period.
In terms of electronic waste, Switzerland is even very poorly rated, ranking third in the world, with 23 kg per inhabitant in 2020.
Framework conditions favorable to recycling
Meeting in Bern on Monday, the coalition therefore calls on the Confederation to support the circular economy and promote it to businesses and consumers.
The current framework conditions encourage an economy of recycling and recovery of materials much more than an economy of reuse and re-use. Hence the challenge of the draft revision of the Environmental Protection Act, drafted in response to the parliamentary initiative “developing the circular economy in Switzerland”.
The members of the coalition intend to support this project, the most promising in their eyes because the only one which “finally proposes legislative changes to fight against the premature aging of objects”.
Feriel Mestiri/ats