Okuzeka
Environment & Climate vocabulary · Sustainability and Circular Economy

Resource efficiency

Meaning in environment & climate, with examples

/ˈriːsɔːrs ɪˈfɪʃənsi/nounCommon term

In environment & climate, resource efficiency means: Using less raw material, water and energy to make the same product or deliver the same service, while creating less waste and pollution.

In Turkish: kaynak verimliliği

How it is used

Used in industry, EU policy and circular economy work. Companies run resource efficiency programs, measure material and water intensity (use per unit of product) and look for savings. Cleaner production and industrial symbiosis, where one firm's waste becomes another firm's input, are related ideas.

Example sentences

  1. The resource efficiency study found that we could reuse 30% of our process water.

  2. Improving resource efficiency cut both our costs and our waste.

Common collocations

  • improve resource efficiency
  • resource efficiency program
  • cleaner production
  • industrial symbiosis
  • water intensity
  • circular economyAn economic model that keeps products and materials in use for as long as possible through reuse, repair, remanufacturing and recycling, instead of making, using and throwing away.
  • energy efficiencyUsing less energy to provide the same service, such as heating, lighting or production, for example through insulation, efficient motors or LED lighting.
  • waste hierarchyAn order of priority for dealing with waste: first prevent it, then reuse, recycle and recover energy, and only as a last option dispose of it.
  • water footprintThe total volume of fresh water used to produce a product, or used by a person, company or country, including the water used along the whole supply chain.

More terms: Sustainability and Circular Economy

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: