Interesting. Certainly it would be better if more products could be repaired rather than replaced, but my concern would be that this encourages manufactures to make components deliberately breakable so more repairs are needed.
It is frustrating: you buy a new appliance then just after the warranty runs out, it gives up the ghost. You can’t repair it and can’t find anyone else to at a decent price, so it joins the global mountain of junk. You’re forced to buy a replacement, which fuels climate change from the greenhouse gases released in the manufacturing process.
But help is at hand, because citizens in the EU and parts of the USA will soon get a "right to repair" - of sorts. This consists of a series of proposals from European environment ministers to force manufacturers to make goods that last longer and are easier to mend. The European proposals refer to lighting, televisions and large home appliances. At least 18 US states are considering similar laws in a growing backlash against products which can’t be prised apart because they’re glued together, or which don’t have a supply of spare parts, or repair instructions.
Consumer campaigners complain the EU Commission has allowed firms to keep control of the repair process by insisting some products are mended by professionals under the control of manufacturers. The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) said: “This restricts the access of independent repairers to spare parts and information - and that limits the scope and affordability of repair services.” The EEB also wants other products like smart phones and printers included in the legislation.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46797396
Even if that's the case--that they make individual components ripe for breakage--there's still less waste. It doesn't solve the problem of corporations bilking people, but the environment could get a little breathing room.
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