Vol. 36 (2026): Volumen 36
Artículos de revisión

Reflexiones teóricas e hipótesis de economía circular para la reducción de residuos

PDF
  • Sergio Gabriel Ceballos Pérez,
  • Ramiro Flores-Xolocotzi
Sergio Gabriel Ceballos Pérez
Cátedras Conacyt
Ramiro Flores-Xolocotzi
Unión de Investigadores para la Sustentabilidad
Biografía
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15174/au.2026.4520

Publicado 2026-02-18

Cómo citar

Ceballos Pérez, S. G., & Flores-Xolocotzi, R. (2026). Reflexiones teóricas e hipótesis de economía circular para la reducción de residuos. Acta Universitaria, 36, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.15174/au.2026.4520

Derechos de autor 2026 Sergio Gabriel Ceballos Pérez, Ramiro Flores-Xolocotzi

Creative Commons License

Esta obra está bajo una licencia internacional Creative Commons Atribución-NoComercial-SinDerivadas 4.0.

Resumen

Frente al aumento acelerado de residuos, la economía circular (EC) representa una alternativa que puede transformar los procesos productivos y de consumo. No obstante, a pesar del auge de la EC, no hay claridad conceptual ni teórica. Este trabajo se plantea como objetivos: identificar y clarificar la teoría económica detrás de la EC; generar un modelo de EC propio; y proponer hipótesis económicas, ambientales y sociales que puedan ser contrastadas en investigaciones posteriores. Como metodología se llevó a cabo una revisión crítica de literatura basada en el método de bola de nieve, con el cual se revisaron 143 artículos mediante un motor de búsqueda de artículos científicos. Como resultados se obtuvieron la identificación de tres modelos económicos básicos junto con sus limitantes para interpretarlos correctamente, la generación de un modelo propio y la propuesta de hipótesis e indicadores nuevos que podrán ser probados en estudios posteriores.

PDF

Citas

  1. Bányai, T., Tamás, P., Illés, B., Stankevičiūtė, Ž., & Bányai, Á. (2019). Optimization of municipal waste collection routing: impact of industry 4.0 technologies on environmental awareness and sustainability. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(4), 634. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16040634
  2. Barbier, E. B., & Markandya, A. (1993). Environmentally sustainable development: optimal economic conditions. En Barbier, E. B. & Markandya, A. (eds.), Economics and Ecology (pp. 11-28). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1518-6_2
  3. Barrientos, C., Valadez, A., & Bustos, J. M. (2012). Efecto de la información sobre el conocimiento ambiental de separación de residuos en jóvenes universitarios. Quaderns de Psicologia, 14(1), 7-16. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/qpsicologia.914
  4. Benyam, A., Kinnear, S., & Rolfe, J. (2018). Integrating community perspectives into domestic food waste prevention and diversion policies. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 134, 174-183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.03.019
  5. Betanzo-Quezada, E., Torres-Gurrola, M. A., Romero-Navarrete, J. A., & Obregón-Biosca, S. A. (2016). Evaluation of municipal solid waste collection routes with support of satellite tracking devices: analysis and implications. Revista Internacional de Contaminación Ambiental, 32(3), 323-337. https://doi.org/10.20937/RICA.2016.32.03.07
  6. Brock, W. A., & Taylor, M. S. (2010). The Green Solow model. Journal of Economic Growth, 15, 127–153. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10887-010-9051-0
  7. Brown, L. R., Gardner, G., & Halweil, B. (2014). Beyond Malthus: The Nineteen Dimensions of the Population Challenge. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315071589
  8. Calisto, M., Vermeulen, W. J. V., & Salomone, R. (2020). A typology of circular economy discourses: navigating the diverse visions of a contested paradigm. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 161, 104917. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104917
  9. Calisto, M., Vermeulen, W. J. V., & Salomone, R. (2021). Analyzing European Union circular economy policies: words versus actions. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 27, 337-353. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.11.001
  10. Ceballos, S. G., & Flores, R. (2022). Una prueba de hipótesis de la curva ambiental de Kuznets para residuos sólidos urbanos en México, 1992-2018. Revista de Economía, 39(99), 54-82. https://doi.org/10.33937/reveco.2022.275
  11. Chadar, S., & Keerti, C. (2017). Solid waste pollution: a hazard to environment. Recent Advances in Petrochemical Science, 2(3), 41-43. https://doi.org/10.19080/rapsci.2017.02.555586
  12. Chen, D. M. C., Bodirsky, B. L., Krueger, T., Mishra, A., & Popp, A. (2020). The world’s growing municipal solid waste: trends and impacts. Environmental Research Letters, 15(7), 074021. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab8659
  13. Cheng, K. Y., Wong, P. Y., Whitwell, C., Innes, L., & Kaksonen, A. H. (2019). A new method for ranking potential hazards and risks from wastes. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 365, 778-788. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2018.11.059
  14. Cohen, F., Hepburn, C. J., & Teytelboym, A. (2019). Is natural capital really substitutable?. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 44, 425–448. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-101718-033055
  15. Corvellec, H., Stowell, A. F., & Johansson, N. (2022). Critiques of the circular economy. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 26(2), 421-432. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13187
  16. D’Amato, D., Droste, N., Allen, B., Kettunen, M., Lähtinen, K., Korhonen, J., & Toppinen, A. (2017). Green, circular, bio economy: a comparative analysis of sustainability avenues. Journal of Cleaner Production, 168, 716-734. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.09.053
  17. Del Pozo, C. (2020). Modelos “verdes” de crecimiento económico [Tesis]. Universidad de Valladolid. https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/45818
  18. Díaz-Villavicencio, G., Didonet, S. R., & Dodd, A. (2017). Influencing factors of eco-efficient urban waste management: evidence from Spanish municipalities. Journal of Cleaner Production, 164, 1486–1496. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.07.064
  19. Duarte, B., Scavarda, L. F., Gusmao, R. G., & Fuss, M. (2021). Improving urban household solid waste management in developing countries based on the German experience. Waste Management, 120, 772-783. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2020.11.001
  20. Feola, G. (2024). Trampas de la economía circular. Revista Kawsaypacha: Sociedad y Medio Ambiente, (13), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.18800/kawsaypacha.202401.A005
  21. Fernández-Aracil, P., Ortuño-Padilla, A., & Melgarejo-Moreno, J. (2018). Factors related to municipal costs of waste collection service in Spain. Journal of Cleaner Production, 175, 553-560. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.116
  22. Flores-Xolocotzi, R., & Ceballos, S. (2023). Desacoplamiento económico y generación de residuos sólidos en municipios turísticos de México. Sociedad y Economía, (49), e10412245. https://doi.org/10.25100/sye.v0i49.12245
  23. Franceschelli, M. V., Santoro, G., Giacosa, E., & Quaglia, R. (2019). Assessing the determinants of performance in the recycling business: evidence from the Italian context. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 26(5), 1086-1099. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1788
  24. Fullerton, D. (2024). The circular economy [working paper w32419]. National Bureau of Economic Research. http://www.nber.org/papers/w32419
  25. Geissdoerfer, M., Savaget, P., Bocken, N. M. P., & Hultink, E. J. (2017). The Circular Economy – A new sustainability paradigm?. Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 757–768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048
  26. Georgescu-Roegen, N. (1971). The entropy law and the economic process. Harvard University Press. https://content.csbs.utah.edu/~lozada/Adv_Resource_Econ/En_Law_Econ_Proc_Cropped_Optimized_Clearscan.pdf
  27. Gerrits, L., & Marks, P. (2015). How the complexity sciences can inform public administration: an assessment. Public Administration, 93(2), 539-546. https://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12168
  28. Gomes, M. F., & Silva, V. K. (2020). Municipal taxes for the generation and collection of solid waste: differences and analysis of extrafiscal function. Revista de Direito Da Cidade, 12(4), 2623-2645. https://doi.org/10.12957/rdc.2020.52550
  29. Gonçalves, A., Moraes, F., Marques, G., Lima, J., & Lima, R. (2018). Urban solid waste challenges in the BRICS countries: a systematic literature review. Revista Ambiente e Agua, 13. https://doi.org/10.4136/ambi-agua.2157
  30. González, A. C., Cañellas, S., Puig, I., Russi D., Sendra C., & Sojo A. (2010). El flujo de materiales y el desarrollo económico en España: un análisis sobre desmaterialización (1980-2004). Revista Iberoamericana de Economía Ecológica, 14(1), 33-51. https://redibec.org/ojs/index.php/revibec/article/view/233
  31. González, M. (2019). La valorización de los residuos reciclables y la sustentabilidad urbana. Una propuesta teórico-metodológica para su abordaje. Revista I+A, Investigación Más Acción, (22), 108–131. https://revistasfaud.mdp.edu.ar/ia/article/view/346/229
  32. Guibrunet, L. (2021). The interplay of tacit and explicit knowledge in the informal economy: the atypical case of a recycling family business in Mexico City. International Development Planning Review, 43(1). https://doi.org/10.3828/idpr.2019.6
  33. Hadley, E., Hartley, S., McLeod, C., & Polson, P. (2020). The sustainable path to a circular bioeconomy. Trends in Biotechnology, 39(6), 542-545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibtech.2020.10.015
  34. Harris, S., Martin, M., & Diener, D. (2021). Circularity for circularity’s sake? Scoping review of assessment methods for environmental performance in the circular economy. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 26, 172–186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.09.018
  35. Hausman, D. M. (2018). The bond between positive and normative economics. Revue d’Economie Politique, 128, 191-208. https://doi.org/10.3917/redp.282.0191
  36. Heshmati, A. (2017). A review of the circular economy and its implementation. International Journal of Green Economics, 11(3–4), 251-288. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJGE.2017.089856
  37. Ibarra, D. (2013). El modelo de crecimiento económico Solow-Swan aplicado a la contaminación y su reciclaje. Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Forestales, 4(15), 08-24. http://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2007-11322013000100002&lng=es&tlng=es
  38. Jõgi, K., & Bhat, R. (2020). Valorization of food processing wastes and by-products for bioplastic production. Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, 18, 100326. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scp.2020.100326
  39. Khajuria, A., Yamamoto, Y., & Morioka, T. (2010). Estimation of municipal solid waste generation and landfill area in Asian developing countries. Journal of Environmental Biology, 31(5), 649-654. https://jeb.co.in/journal_issues/201009_sep10/paper_16.pdf
  40. Kirchherr, J., Reike, D., & Hekkert, M. (2017). Conceptualización de la economía circular: un análisis de 114 definiciones. Recursos, Conservación y Reciclaje, 127, 221-232. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2017.09.005
  41. Klein, L. (1983). La economía de la oferta y la demanda. Fondo de Cultura Económica.
  42. Kumar, R., Bhattarai, D., & Neupane, S. (2019). Designing solid waste collection strategy in small municipalities of developing countries using choice experiment. Journal of Urban Management, 8(3), 386-395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jum.2018.12.008
  43. Leal, W., Saari, U., Fedoruk, M., Iital, A., Moora, H., Klöga, M., & Voronova, V. (2019). An overview of the problems posed by plastic products and the role of extended producer responsibility in Europe. Journal of Cleaner Production, 214, 550–558. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.12.256
  44. López, S. M. (2018). Reutilización de residuos sólidos construcción con eco-ladrillos en un entorno rural educativo [Tesis de Maestría]. Escuela de Ingenierías. https://repository.upb.edu.co/handle/20.500.11912/4105
  45. Madden, B., Florin, N., Mohr, S., & Giurco, D. (2019). Using the waste Kuznet's curve to explore regional variation in the decoupling of waste generation and socioeconomic indicators. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 149, 674–685. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.06.025
  46. Manni, A., El Haddar, A., El Amrani, I. E., El Bouari., A., & Sadik, C. (2019). Valorization of coffee waste with Moroccan clay to produce a porous red ceramic (class BIII). Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Cerámica y Vidrio, 58(5), 211-220. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bsecv.2019.03.001
  47. Manzi, V., Rendón, L. I., Herrera, M., Gandini, M. A., & Marmolejo, L. F. (2020). Estado de la valorización de biorresiduos de origen residencial en grandes centros urbanos. Revista Internacional de Contaminación Ambiental, 36(3), 755-774. https://doi.org/10.20937/rica.53341
  48. Martínez, J., & Roca, J. (2013). Economía ecológica y política ambiental. FCE. https://storage.e.jimdo.com/file/d938597f-ec74-4f0b-a66a-79d509ede1e9/Martinez%20Alier.pdf
  49. Matuštík, J., & Kočí, V. (2021). What is a footprint? A conceptual analysis of environmental footprint indicators. Journal of Cleaner Production, 285, 124833. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124833
  50. Miller, J. D., Elattar, O., & Bach, V. N. (2023). Método científico. En A. E. Eltorai, J. A. Bakal & B. D. Owens (eds.), Translational sports medicine (pp. 9-13). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-91259-4.00098-9
  51. Montagnini, L. (2017). Interdisciplinarity in Norbert Wiener, a mathematician-philosopher of our time. Biophysical Chemistry, 229, 173-180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpc.2017.06.009
  52. Morseletto, P. (2020). Targets for a circular economy. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 153, 104553. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104553
  53. Negrei, C., & Istudor, N. (2018). Circular economy - Between theory and practice. Amfiteatru Economic, 20(48), 498-509. https://doi.org/10.24818/EA/2018/48/498
  54. Oladipo, O., & Okon, E. (2018). Economic system and environment: co-composting effect of Prosopis africana and cow dung. American Economic y Social Review, 2(1), 52-66. https://doi.org/10.46281/aesr.v2i1.154
  55. Ortiz-Moctezuma, M., Pivovarchuk, D., Szolgayova, J., & Fuss, S. (2010). Dynamic systems, economic growth, and the environment. Springer. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-642-02132-9
  56. Patwa, N., Sivarajah, U., Seetharaman, A., Sarkar, S., Maiti, K., & Hingorani, K. (2021). Towards a circular economy: an emerging economies context. Journal of Business Research, 122, 725-735. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.05.015
  57. Pearce, D. (1985). Economía ambiental. Fondo de Cultura Económica.
  58. Petit-Boix, A., & Leipold, S. (2018). Circular economy in cities: reviewing how environmental research aligns with local practices. Journal of Cleaner Production, 195, 1270-1281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.05.281
  59. Plastinina, I., Teslyuk, L., Dukmasova, N., & Pikalova, E. (2019). Implementation of circular economy principles in regional solid municipal waste management: the case of Sverdlovskaya Oblast (Russian Federation). Resources, 8(2), 90. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources8020090
  60. Popper, K. R. (2005). Conocimiento objetivo: un enfoque evolucionista. Editorial Tecnos.
  61. Prieto-Sandoval, V., Jaca, C., & Ormazabal, M. (2018). Towards a consensus on the circular economy. Journal of Cleaner Production, 179, 605-615. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.224
  62. Richardson, B. (2012). From a fossil-fuel to a biobased economy: the politics of industrial biotechnology. Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space, 30(2), 282–296. https://doi.org/10.1068/c10209
  63. Rodríguez, L., & Ruiz, D. (2001). El concepto de capital natural en los modelos de crecimiento exógeno. Análisis Económico, 16(33), 109-128. https://analisiseconomico.azc.uam.mx/index.php/rae/article/view/927
  64. Rovenskaya, E. (2010). Optimal Economic Growth Under Stochastic Environmental Impact: Sensitivity Analysis. In: Crespo Cuaresma, J., Palokangas, T., Tarasyev, A. (eds) Dynamic Systems, Economic Growth, and the Environment. Dynamic Modeling and Econometrics in Economics and Finance, vol 12. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02132-9_5
  65. Sekhohola-Dlamini, L., & Tekere, M. (2020). Microbiology of municipal solid waste landfills: a review of microbial dynamics and ecological influences in waste bioprocessing. Biodegradation, 31, 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10532-019-09890-x
  66. Sikor, T., He, J., & Lestrelin, G. (2017). Property rights regimes and natural resources: a conceptual analysis revisited. World Development, 93, 337-349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2016.12.032
  67. Skare, M., Gavurova, B., & Kovac, V. (2023). Investigation of selected key indicators of circular economy for implementation processes in sectorial dimensions. Journal of Innovation and Knowledge, 8(4), 100421. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jik.2023.100421
  68. Smol, M., Duda, J., Czaplicka-Kotas, A., & Szołdrowska, D. (2020). Transformation towards circular economy (CE) in municipal waste management system: model solutions for Poland. Sustainability, 12(11), 4561. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12114561
  69. Sobhee, S. K. (2004). The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC): a logistic curve?. Applied Economics Letters, 11(7), 449–452. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350485042000207216
  70. Stegmann, P., Londo, M., & Junginger, M. (2020). The circular bioeconomy: its elements and role in European bioeconomy clusters. Resources, Conservation and Recycling: X, 6, 100029. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcrx.2019.100029
  71. Taleb, M., & Al Farooque, O. (2021). Towards a circular economy for sustainable development: an application of full cost accounting to municipal waste recyclables. Journal of Cleaner Production, 280, 124047. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124047
  72. Tsang, Y. F., Kumar, V., Samadar, P., Yang, Y., Lee, J., Ok, Y. S., Song, H., Kim, K. H., Kwon, E. E., & Jeon, Y. J. (2019). Production of bioplastic through food waste valorization. Environment International, 127, 625–644. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.03.076
  73. Van Engelenhoven, T., Kassahun, A., & Tekinerdogan, B. (2021). Circular business processes in the state-of-the-practice: a survey study. Sustainability, 13(23), 13307. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132313307
  74. Velenturf, A. P. M., & Purnell, P. (2021). Principles for a sustainable circular economy. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 27, 1437-1457. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2021.02.018
  75. Wang, R., Cao, Q., Zhao, Q., & Li, Y. (2018). Bioindustry in China: an overview and perspective. New Biotechnology, 40, 46–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbt.2017.08.002
  76. Watanabe, C., Naveed, N., & Neittaanmäki, P. (2019). Digitalized bioeconomy: planned obsolescence-driven circular economy enabled by Co-Evolutionary coupling. Technology in Society, 56, 8–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2018.09.002
  77. Yong, R. (2007). The circular economy in China. Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, 9(2), 121-129. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10163-007-0183-z
  78. Yun, B. Y., Cho, H. M., Kim, Y. U., Lee, S. C., Berardi, U., & Kim, S. (2020). Circular reutilization of coffee waste for sound-absorbing panels: a perspective on material recycling. Environmental Research, 184, 109281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.109281
  79. Zhou, F., Lim, M. K., He, Y., Lin, Y., & Chen, S. (2019). End-of-life vehicle (ELV) recycling management: improving performance using an ISM approach. Journal of Cleaner Production, 228, 231-243. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.182
  80. Zhu, J., Fan, C., Shi, H., & Shi, L. (2019). Efforts for a circular economy in China: a comprehensive review of policies. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 23(1), 110-118. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12754