UPSC Prelims 2025 Q9: Circular Economy and GHG Emissions — Explained

Consider the following statements:

Statement I: Circular economy reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases.

Statement II: Circular economy reduces the use of raw materials as inputs.

Statement III: Circular economy reduces wastage in the production process.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Both Statement II and Statement III are correct and both of them explain Statement I
Both Statement II and Statement III are correct but only one of them explains Statement I
Only one of the Statements II and III is correct and that explains Statement I
Neither Statement II nor Statement III is correct

Answer: (a) Both Statement II and Statement III are correct and both of them explain Statement I

Statement-wise explanation

STATEMENT-I: correct — A circular economy keeps products and materials in use through reuse, repair, remanufacturing and recycling. This cuts emissions from mining, refining and making new materials, and cuts methane from landfilled waste. UNEP's Global Resources Outlook 2024 says the extraction and processing of resources causes over 60% of planet-warming emissions. Using fewer new resources therefore means fewer greenhouse gases.
STATEMENT-II: correct — Recovered materials go back into production in place of virgin inputs, such as recycled metal, recycled plastic and steel slag used as road aggregate. Using less virgin material is a core aim of circularity. Indian policy describes the goal as minimising the extraction of raw materials, water and energy. This statement explains Statement-I: extracting and processing raw materials is energy-heavy, so using less of them directly lowers emissions.
STATEMENT-III: correct — Circular design, such as resource-efficient processes, by-product use and industrial symbiosis, aims to design waste out of production instead of handling it at the end. One firm's scrap or by-product becomes another firm's input. This also explains Statement-I. Less waste means less energy spent making material that gets thrown away, and less methane and burning emissions from disposal.

How to eliminate

Start from the basic definition. A circular economy replaces the linear 'take-make-dispose' model with 'reduce-reuse-recycle'. From that definition alone, both Statement II (fewer raw materials) and Statement III (less waste) are clearly true. That rules out the two options that say one or neither is correct. You are left choosing between 'both explain I' and 'only one explains I'. Ask whether each mechanism, on its own, lowers emissions. Extracting and processing raw materials is energy-heavy, so using less of them cuts emissions. Producing less waste avoids wasted energy and landfill methane, so that also cuts emissions. Both are independent causal routes, and neither statement uses an absolute word ('only', 'always') that could make it false. In Statement I/II/III questions, when every statement describes a defining feature of the same concept, the answer is usually 'both correct and both explain'. The thing to remember is the fact behind it: material extraction and processing is responsible for over half of global GHG emissions (UNEP, Global Resources Outlook 2024).

Know more

Circular economy is an economic model that keeps products, components and materials in use at their highest value for as long as possible. It is designed so that waste is not created in the first place. It replaces the linear economy of take-make-dispose.

Feature	Linear economy	Circular economy
Material flow	One-way: extract, use, discard	Closed loop: materials re-enter production
Raw material demand	High, keeps rising	Lower; secondary materials replace virgin ones
Waste	Treated as unavoidable, sent to landfill or burnt	Designed out; by-products become inputs
GHG emissions	High, from extraction, processing and disposal	Lower across the product life cycle
Value	Lost at end of life	Recovered through repair, refurbishing and recycling

Why it matters for climate: UNEP's Global Resources Outlook 2024 found that global material extraction rose from about 30 billion tonnes in 1970 to 106 billion tonnes, more than tripling. Extracting and processing resources causes over 60% of planet-warming emissions. Energy efficiency alone cannot reach climate goals without cutting material use.

The R-hierarchy: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Recycle, Recover. The higher strategies (reduce, reuse) save more energy and emissions than recycling.

India's tools:

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) rules for plastic packaging, e-waste, battery waste, waste tyres and used oil. Producers must collect and recycle their products at end of life.
Mission LiFE (launched October 2022): reducing waste is one of its core themes.
Eco-mark Rules, 2024: label products that are resource-efficient and circular.
Jaipur Declaration (2025–34): adopted at the 12th Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific (Jaipur, 3–5 March 2025). It succeeds the Hanoi Declaration (2013–23).

In the news

India hosted the 12th Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific at Jaipur on 3–5 March 2025, under the theme 'Realizing Circular Societies Towards Achieving SDGs and Carbon Neutrality in Asia-Pacific'. The forum adopted the Jaipur Declaration (2025–34). This put the link between circularity and carbon neutrality in the news less than three months before Prelims.

NCERT Concepts to Revise

Circular economy: Keeping materials in use longer is how a circular economy could cut demand for fresh raw materials as inputs.
Circular economy: Designing waste out of the system is the idea Statement III tests about the production process.
Efficient use of resources: Resource efficiency links using fewer inputs and less waste to lower energy use and emissions.
Carbon footprint: Statement I is about greenhouse gases; carbon footprint is how emissions across a product's life cycle are counted.
Extended producer responsibility: EPR is India's main legal tool for closing material loops in plastics, e-waste, batteries and tyres.
Green economy: A green economy is low-carbon and resource-efficient; this helps separate circularity from broader green-growth ideas.