Ecoindustrial Park

An ecoindustrial park (EIP) is a cluster of businesses networking and cooperating with each other as well as with other stakeholders, such as the local community, in an attempt to efficiently share resources to reduce overall waste and pollution. The goal is to achieve sustainable development and improve environmental quality, while also increasing economic gains. Members work together in what is often a contiguous location where coinvestors seek superior environmental, economic, and social performance through symbiotic collaboration in resource management and the supply of ecoefficient services, such electricity, transportation, and waste removal. EIP designs usually include individually managed buildings as well as shared support facilities.

In Kalundborg, Denmark, a symbiosis network allows DONG Energy's Asnaes Power Plant to heat 3,500 local homes. Steam from the power plant is also sold to a pharmaceutical and enzyme manufacturer, and fly ash and clinker from the plant are used for road building and cement production

Source: lcl/Wikipedia

The ecoindustrial park concept is a culmination of several fields of research and practice including industrial ecology, clean production, urban planning, and architecture. At a basic level, the model builds from a business concept known as economies of scale, or reductions in unit cost and increases in efficiency gained from large-scale or aggregate production. For example, it can be costly for one firm to build transportation infrastructure, but spread across a dozen firms the expense per firm is reduced. Furthermore, options such as public transportation routes or carpooling are increasingly feasible when business partners cooperate. By augmenting savings through cost sharing, the park may be able to host support services such as a training center, a cafeteria, a daycare center, or research and development (R&D) facilities that may otherwise be unaffordable.

[Page 157]The EIP concept has evolved along with innovation in patterns of intercompany relationships and organization design, but the unique contribution of the EIP is the goal to advance ecologically friendly development. This objective is particularly notable because industrial clusters or corridors have historically been linked to pollution and degradation of the local environment. In contrast to many industrial parks, an EIP should fit into its natural setting and take a proactive role in rehabilitating or at least maintaining the surrounding ecological systems. A number of EIPs have adjacent forest, wetland, or coastal areas under sustainable management plans. In some instances, attunement to the local environment can contribute to reductions in operating costs, such as when firms collect and utilize rainwater in drought-prone environments. Other advantages come from efficiencies in lighting and heat. Some parks develop on-site renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar. An EIP goal may be to become totally energy independent of fossil fuels or outside electricity, and the EIP may be created adjacent to existing or expanding power plants for this reason. The park can also include an efficient material flow system by anchoring development around resource recovery companies that are set up for this purpose. For example, a water flow system can be designed such that processed water from one plant may be reused by another.

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