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Analyzing the Environmental Benefits of Industrial Symbiosis
Author(s) -
Sokka Laura,
Lehtoranta Suvi,
Nissinen Ari,
Melanen Matti
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of industrial ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.377
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1530-9290
pISSN - 1088-1980
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-9290.2010.00276.x
Subject(s) - industrial symbiosis , upstream (networking) , industrial ecology , life cycle assessment , environmental impact assessment , environmental economics , environmental science , cleaner production , production (economics) , environmental resource management , business , sustainability , electricity , ecological footprint , computer science , municipal solid waste , ecology , waste management , economics , engineering , computer network , electrical engineering , macroeconomics , biology
Summary Studies of industrial symbiosis (IS) focus on the physical flows of materials and energy in local industrial systems. In an ideal IS, waste material and energy are shared or exchanged among the actors of the system, thereby reducing the consumption of virgin material and energy inputs, and likewise the generation of waste and emissions. In this study, the environmental impacts of an industrial ecosystem centered around a pulp and paper mill and operating as an IS are analyzed using life cycle assessment (LCA). The system is compared with two hypothetical reference systems in which the actors would operate in isolation. Moreover, the system is analyzed further in order to identify possibilities for additional links between the actors. The results show that of the total life cycle impacts of the system, upstream processes made the greatest overall contribution to the results. Comparison with stand‐alone production shows that in the case studied, the industrial symbiosis results in modest improvements, 5% to 20% in most impact categories, in the overall environmental impacts of the system. Most of the benefits occur upstream through heat and electricity production for the local town. All in all it is recommended that when the environmental impacts of industrial symbiosis are assessed, the impacts occurring upstream should also be studied, not only the impacts within the ecosystem.