The circular economy’s closed loop and product service systems for sustainable development : a comprehensive review and appraisal

Abstract

The circular economy (CE) has recently stimulated debates on sustainable consumption and production; Its regenerative systems minimise the environmental impact as practitioner reduce their externalities, including; waste, emissions, and energy leakages through the use and reuse of resources. Therefore, this review paper examines relevant regulatory guidelines, policies and recommendations on sustainable development; where it traces the origins of CE. Afterwards, it sheds light on key theoretical underpinnings on CE’s closed loop and product service systems. This contribution offers a critique on CE’s inherent limitations and discusses about the implications of having regulatory interventions that are intended to encourage responsible consumption and production behaviours. In conclusion, this contribution implies that CE is creating value to business and the environmental dimensions. This sustainable development model has potential to unleash a new wave of operational efficiencies through reduced throughput in production processes; as practitioners repair, reuse, remanufacture, refurbish, and recycle resources, whilst safeguarding the natural environment.