ÌǹûÅɶÔ

When you buy a beautiful old drawer in a second-hand shop, you might think you are doing the climate and the environment a favour.

You are not. At least, not necessarily.

That is the conclusion of , which has just been published in the journal Sustainable Production and Consumption.

In the study, the researchers examine the climate impact of Odense Renovation’s second-hand shop, Zirkel, and, as the first major Danish study, also factor in the so-called rebound effect.

- The rebound effect occurs when green initiatives prove to be less effective than they could have been because people change their behaviour and increase their consumption, explains Ciprian Cimpan, associate professor in life cycle analysis at the University of Southern Denmark and one of the researchers behind the study.

- A well-known example is the energy-saving light bulb, which made lighting very cheap, leading to people rarely switching off their lights.

Potential negative climate impact

There is also a significant rebound effect in relation to secondhand consumer products, according to research literature, especially in wealthy countries like Denmark.

In the study of the secondhand shop on Funen, the researchers from ÌǹûÅÉ¶Ô chose to focus on furniture, as it was the largest product group in the shop. Their calculations show that buying used furniture at Zirkel could potentially save 1.8 kilos of COâ‚‚ equivalents per kilo of reused furniture.

The problem, however, according to the researchers, is that most of these reductions are eaten by the rebound effect.

Partly because previous studies show that second-hand furniture does not always replace new products on a one-to-one basis. Partly because buying a used sofa instead of a new one saves a lot of money, which is – again according to previous studies – often spent on other products.

As a result, in some cases, there may even be a potential negative effect, explains Ruby Bubinek, the lead author of the study and PhD student at ÌǹûÅÉ¶Ô Life Cycle Engineering.

- We estimate a rebound effect of between 82 and 167 per cent. This means that, at best, reusing furniture could lead to emission savings of 0.32 kilos COâ‚‚e per kilo of reused furniture, and at worst, it could result in emissions of 1.23 kilos of COâ‚‚e per kilo of reused furniture in our calculated scenarios.

The numbers are based on results from previous studies, the prices on the secondhand furniture in Zirkel, and data on the Danes’ consumption patterns.

- It is important to say that this is an estimate, so there will be consumers for whom these figures apply and others for whom they do not. But overall, it indicates that reusing alone is not enough, says Ruby Bubinek.

Several possible solutions

In their study, the researchers propose several ways to reduce the rebound effect and better realise the potential of reusing consumer products.

- Part of the responsibility lies with manufacturers and policymakers. For instance, stricter requirements could be set for the quality and durability of new products, ensuring they can be repaired. This would mean that when products eventually enter the recycling stream, they are more likely to replace new products one-to-one, says Ciprian Cimpan.

However, the researchers also believe that consumers need to be more aware of their behavioural patterns.

- While donating clothes for reuse or buying a second-hand chair are great steps, it's important to make broader changes to your behavior to be more climate and environmentally friendly. It’s all about reducing our overall consumption, says Ruby Bubinek.