owners: The extra expenses associated with production, transport
and disposal operations place heavy burdens on the people who
manufacture these products, our resources and the environment.
In their study ‘Planned Obsolescence’, consumerist Stefan
Schridde and economist Prof. Dr Christian Krei reckon that in
Germany, 2.6 percent of all the garbage in the country emerges
solely on account of planned obsolescence (ten million tonnes a
year). The claim is based on the estimate that seven percent of all
the expenses of private households can be traced back to planned
obsolescence. If planned obsolescence came to an end, it would
allegedly become possible to shut down five of Germany’s 70
garbage incineration plants.
Those who believe that products with artificially-shortened
lifetimes help to enhance our economy are quite wrong. This is
how Christian Krei addresses the issue in the study: “If human
labour, diligence and intelligence are spent on products that are
designed to break down sooner rather than later, it represents an
irresponsible waste of resources which hurts all of us while
creating […] advantages for a select few.” If the law manages to
prohibit planned obsolescence altogether, it would free up labour
forces and purchasing power, which could then be used to raise
our standard of living.
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