As with recycling - if it’s worth it, do it, if it’s not, don’t. Recycling ciopper into new plumbing fixtures works, makes a profit. Recycling concrete into hardcore works economically, recycling concrete back into cement does not (yes, it is possible) so don’t.

France will soon begin paying people to have their clothes and shoes repaired instead of throwing them away in a push to reduce waste.

From October, the French will be able to claim a “repair bonus” worth up to €25 (£21) for clothing alterations and shoe repairs as part of a government mission to divert textiles from landfills and fight fast fashion.

This is silly and we’re actually given the example of why it is:

For years, tailors have been fighting an uphill battle against fast-fashion brands, Mr Liotet said, pointing out that consumers are less likely to pay €10 to repair a torn shirt when they can buy a new one for €4.99.

Quite. Prices do contain the information about the resources required to make or do the thing. Repairing a shirt requires more resources than a new shirt. So, to save resources have a new shirt, don’t repair the old.

The problem here is that people have reified the concept of “saving resources” without ever bothering to think about the resources being saved. And the information is all there in prices - things that are more expensive require more resources.