Since 2005, economic output in Lower Austria has increased by 24 percent, adjusted for inflation. CO2 emissions have fallen by a quarter in the same time. Entrepreneurs are “the best climate protectors,” said Deputy Governor Stephan Pernkopf (ÖVP).
Especially in an economic environment that needs to reorient itself worldwide in terms of employment and growth, the circular economy offers concepts for sustainable, innovative and more efficient business models. From design to use, repair and reuse to recycling. The Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce is therefore launching a free online seminar series together with the NÖ-Energie- und Umweltagentur GmbH (eNu), which is intended to explain how companies benefit from the circular economy.
LH deputy Stephan Pernkopf (ÖVP) and WKNÖ President Wolfgang Ecker see a lot of potential in the circular economy.
Photo:
Josef Bollwein, Josef Bollwein
By using resources more efficiently, costs can be reduced, competitiveness increased and new products and services can be developed at the same time. “The circular economy is therefore becoming more and more important,” emphasizes Wolfgang Ecker, President of the Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce.
In practice, a well-implemented circular economy means that waste is reduced to a minimum. After a product reaches the end of its life, the resources and materials remain in the economy as much as possible. They are therefore used productively again and again in order to continue to generate added value.
Pernkopf concludes that the circular economy reduces energy and resource consumption, thus maintaining value creation in the country and reducing dependence on raw materials from abroad.
