Circular Economy Metrics in Environmental Management System for Waste Reduction; A Case Study of Isfahan's Mobarakeh Steel Company

Document Type : Review Article

Authors

1 Department of Management, Najafabad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran

2 Department of Economics, Faculty of Management, Economics and Accounting, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Climate change and resource scarcity have compelled industries to prioritize the needs of stakeholders (society, regulators, future generations, and shareholders) to ensure survival and competitiveness. Consequently, the circular economy has become a crucial strategy for manufacturing industries. By adopting and implementing this concept, industries can shift from a linear economy to a more sustainable model. This transition enhances material efficiency, optimizes resource consumption, reduces emissions into air, water, and soil, and helps move toward the goal of zero waste. Achieving these benefits requires a commitment to the principles of a circular economy. This research aims to explore the concept of a circular economy and identify relevant metrics within the environmental management system of Isfahan's Mobarakeh Steel Company. The study's statistical population includes vice presidents, managers, and experts, who were selected through snowball sampling until theoretical saturation was reached, resulting in a sample size of 16 individuals. Interviews were conducted to identify the circular economy metrics. The MAXQDA software was utilized for coding and analysis, which led to the development of a final model featuring five main criteria and 27 sub-criteria or categories. The content validity of the model was evaluated using the Content Validity Ratio (CVR) index, yielding a high coefficient of 49%, indicating sufficient validity. Additionally, inter-rater reliability was confirmed using Cohen's kappa coefficient, which resulted in a value of 0.78. These identified metrics can be employed by environmental management within organizations similar to Isfahan's Mobarakeh Steel Company to implement and execute the principles of a circular economy.

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References

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