What are circular economy and traditional economy?

Harding of the United States believes that the traditional industrial society is like a grassland that can be grazed by shepherds at will, and it is a linear economy composed of a single channel of "natural resources-products and supplies-waste discharge", so the traditional economy is also called the traditional shepherd boy economy.

From the flow path of material flow, the traditional economy is an acyclic or unidirectional linear technical and economic model that operates according to the processes of "resources-production-waste-emission" and "resources-production products-consumption-waste-emission", which can be abstractly simplified to the situation shown in Figure 6. 1 In this mode, almost all the resources needed for production are directly taken from nature; Almost all the production and living garbage (i.e. "waste") is directly discharged into the environment. The natural environment has become a "borrow field" and a "garbage dump" for the normal maintenance of human economic activities. This development model has caused great waste and destruction to resources and environment, and it is a predatory economic model. With the outbreak of the energy crisis, many energy consuming countries in the world began to adjust their economy and energy structure strategically.

Figure 6. 1 Traditional economy

Circular economy is a technical and economic model that operates according to two circular processes: "resource production-waste-waste recovery-product production …" and "resource-product production-waste consumption-waste recovery-production …". The operation process of circular economy is complex and can be abstractly simplified, as shown in Figure 6.2. "Waste reuse" is the process of resource regeneration, that is, the process of "waste" becoming reusable resources through collection, decomposition or some technical treatment.

Figure 6.2 Circular Economy

Circular economy is essentially a theory about sustainable utilization of resources, and resource utilization is the eternal theme of circular economy theory. The essential difference between circular economy and traditional economy lies in the different measurement standards of resource utility. The resource utility of traditional economy can be measured by circulating currency, which reflects pure economic value, while the resource utility of circular economy needs to reflect not only economic value, but also environmental value and social value.