Mélanie Haupt

Last Name

Haupt

First Name

Mélanie

ORCID

0000-0002-2869-5030

Organisational unit

01109 - Lehre Bau, Umwelt und Geomatik

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Publications 1 - 10 of 15

Linking energy scenarios and waste storylines for prospective environmental assessment of waste management systems
Meylan, Grégoire; Haupt, Mélanie; Duygan, Mert; et al. (2018)
Waste Management
Why “Circular” doesn't always mean “Sustainable”
Blum, Nicola U.; Haupt, Mélanie; Bening, Catharina R. (2020)
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
Measuring the Environmental Sustainability of a Circular Economy
Haupt, Mélanie; Hellweg, Stefanie (2019)
Environmental and Sustainability Indicators
“What gets measured gets managed” - this quote by Peter Ducker reveals a pitfall for the targeted transition towards a more sustainable, circular economy. Today, mass-based indicators, such as recycling rates, are used to assess the circularity of individual products, firms and of entire countries. These indicators, however, fail to cover the environmental perspective – one of the most mentioned reasons to move from a linear to a circular economy. Here, we propose a complementary environmental-impact based indicator that measures the environmental value retained through reuse, remanufacturing, repairing or recycling. The indicator extends the focus from end-of-life to the entire life cycle and includes substitution of primary materials. Furthermore, it allows for monitoring the transition towards a circular economy from an environmental and possibly economic and social perspective. We provide three examples that highlight the application of the indicator and also reveal that common beliefs about the environmental performance of the circular economy are sometimes misleading and counter-productive.
Environmental impacts of natural resource use
Hellweg, Stefanie; Pfister, Stephan; Cabernard, Livia; et al. (2019)
International Resource Panel ~ Global Resources Outlook 2019
Decoupling economic growth and environmental degradation requires sustainable sourcing and management of resources over the whole life cycle. While the mass-flow indicators of chapter 2 are very useful for understanding the environmental pressures from material consumption, information about the environmental impacts of resource use and resource management practices is also needed to support policymaking for the sustainable use of natural resources (Voet et al., 2005). This chapter focuses on the environmental consequences of resource extraction and processing. It illustrates the legitimate need for appropriate policy to manage natural resources, which is required if we are to remain within the safe operating space (Steffen et al., 2015) and achieve the SDGs.
The environmental performance of enhanced metal recovery from dry municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash
Mehr, Jonas; Haupt, Mélanie; Skutan, Stefan; et al. (2021)
Waste Management
This study assesses the environmental performance of the municipal solid waste (MSW) incineration bottom ash (IBA) treatment plant in Hinwil, Switzerland, a large-scale industrial plant, which also serves as a full-scale laboratory for new technologies and aims at an optimal recovery of metals in terms of quantity and quality. Based on new mass-flow data, we perform a life cycle assessment that includes the recovery of iron, stainless steel, aluminium, copper, lead, silver and gold. Fraction-specific modelling allows for investigating the effect of the metal fraction quality on the subsequent secondary metal production as well as examining further metal recycling potentials in the residual IBA. In addition, the implications on the landfill emissions of IBA residues to water were quantified. The impact assessment considered climate change, eco- and human toxicity and abiotic resource depletion as indicators. Results indicate large environmental savings for every impact category, due to primary metal substitution and reduction of long-term emissions from landfills. Metal product substitution contributes between 75% and >99% to these savings in a base scenario (1′000-year time horizon), depending on the impact category. Reductions in landfill emissions become important only when a much longer time horizon was adopted. The metal-based analysis further illustrates that recovering heavy non-ferrous metals – especially copper and gold – leads to large environmental benefits. Compared to the total net savings of energy recovery (215 kg CO2-eq per tonne of treated waste, average Swiss plant), enhanced metal recovery may save up to 140 kg CO2-eq per tonne of treated waste.
The Identity of Oxo-Degradable Plastics and their Use in Switzerland
Wiesinger, Helene; Klotz, Magdalena; Wang, Zhanyun; et al. (2020)
Oxo-degradable plastics (ODP) are plastics containing pro-oxidant additives that allegedly promote fragmentation and subsequent biodegradation. However, in practice, ODP do not fully biodegrade under environmental or industrial composting conditions, and thus may serve as a source of microplastics in the environment. In addition, ODP can negatively impact recycling processes. In this study, we investigate the occurrence of ODP in Switzerland and the feasibility of identifying ODP using handheld XRF.
Waste not, want not – ambiguities around waste and waste prevention
Wiprächtiger, Maja; Haupt, Mélanie; Rapp, Martina; et al. (2021)
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
A framework for sustainable and circular system design: Development and application on thermal insulation materials
Wiprächtiger, Maja; Haupt, Mélanie; Heeren, Niko; et al. (2020)
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
Limited utilization options for secondary plastics may restrict their circularity
Klotz, Magdalena; Haupt, Mélanie; Hellweg, Stefanie (2022)
Waste Management
Plastic recycling can provide environmental benefits by avoiding the detrimental impacts of alternative disposal pathways and enabling the substitution of primary materials. However, most studies aiming at increasing recycling rates have not investigated how the resulting secondary materials can be utilized in product manufacturing. This study assesses the future substitution potential of primary with secondary plastics, building on a material flow system of 11 plastic types in 54 product subsegments in Switzerland in 2017 with a recycling rate of 9%. In a prospective material flow analysis of a scenario for 2025, the collection rate of the plastic fractions collected in 2017 is increased to 80%. The secondary material flows are allocated to suitable uptaking product subsegments using a linear optimization. The maximum share of secondary materials utilizable in each product subsegment is estimated, whereby three sub-scenarios involving high, moderate and low allowed secondary material shares are modelled. Depending on plastic type and scenario, 21% to 100% of the secondary material gained can substitute for primary material, covering 11% to 17% of the total material demand. While the overall recycling rate could reach 23%, taking into account only the uptaken secondary materials a true recycling rate of only 17% results in the moderate applicability sub-scenario. Based on these results, the secondary material uptake can be said to constitute a limiting factor for increased future recycling. Therefore, thorough consideration of the possible secondary material application is a prerequisite for designing and assessing future recycling systems or for setting recycling rate targets.
Potentials and limits of mechanical plastic recycling
Klotz, Magdalena; Haupt, Mélanie; Hellweg, Stefanie (2023)
Journal of Industrial Ecology
Plastics consumption continues to steeply increase worldwide, while resultant waste is currently mostly landfilled, discarded to the environment, or incinerated. This significantly contributes to global warming and causes negative health and ecosystem effects. Increasing the circularity of plastics can reduce these impacts. This study investigated to which extent plastics' circularity can be increased by mechanical recycling. For this purpose, future scenarios involving increased waste collection, improved product design, and improved waste sorting were assessed. The system studied consists of 11 plastic types in 69 product groups consumed and arising as waste in Switzerland. By means of a material flow analysis, the amounts of consumption, waste, and secondary material utilizable in product manufacturing were quantified for the year 2040. For the waste not mechanically recycled, treatment situations mainly involving energy recovery in waste-to-energy plants and cement kilns were modeled. A life cycle assessment of the complete plastic material flow system was conducted. We found that the mechanical recycling rate calculated based on the utilizable secondary material can be increased to up to 31%. This can lower the plastic carbon footprint by one quarter (1.3% of today's total Swiss carbon footprint) compared to no recycling. Important barriers to a further increase of the recycling rate were inaccessibility, the large diversity of plastic grades, and contamination. The remaining impact at maximum recycling is mainly caused by polyurethanes, polypropylene, and polystyrene production. In conclusion, the potential of mechanical plastic recycling is limited, but it can, as one of several measures, contribute to combating climate change.

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Mélanie Haupt

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