Emergy analysis of an industrial park: The case of Dalian, China

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Abstract

With the rapid development of eco-industrial park projects in China, evaluating their overall eco-efficiency is becoming an important need and a big challenge academically. Developing ecologically conscious industrial park management requires analysis of both industrial and ecological systems. Traditional evaluation methods based on neoclassical economics and embodied energy and exergy analyses have certain limitations due to their focus with environmental issues considered secondary to the maximization of economic and technical objectives. Such methods focus primarily on the environmental impact of emissions and their economic consequences. These approaches ignore the contribution of ecological products and services as well as the load placed on environmental systems and related problems of carrying capacity of economic and industrial development. This paper presents a new method, based upon emergy analysis and synthesis. Such a method links economic and ecological systems together, highlighting the internal relations among the different subsystems and components. The emergy-based method provides insight into the environmental performance and sustainability of an industrial park. This paper depicts the methodology of emergy analysis at the industrial park level and provides a series of emergy-based indices. A case study is investigated and discussed in order to show the emergy method's practical potential. Results from DEDZ (Dalian Economic Development Zone) case show us the potential of emergy synthesis method at the industrial park level for environmental policy making. Its advantages and limitations are also discussed with avenues for future research identified.

Introduction

Industrial parks and industrial clusters are effective strategies for governments at all levels to help encourage economic and industrial growth. With this industrial growth environmental concerns also arise. To help mitigate these environmental concerns the eco-industrial park (EIP) strategy has been adopted by many countries in order to support business activities and local community life by optimizing the use of energy, materials, and community resources (Geng and Côté, 2004). Such an innovative approach can help achieve greater efficiency through “economies of systems integration”, where partnership interaction between different firms and productive activities meet common service, transportation, and infrastructure needs.

The greater ‘eco-efficiency’ of EIPs and industrial parks in general has not been thoroughly investigated. Eco-efficiency focuses on lowering the environmental impact of a product over its life cycle. Emergy analysis and synthesis is a valuable approach for organizations and industrial parks to manage their eco-efficiency and migration towards EIPs. Emergy is defined as the total direct and indirect energy of one source type (e.g., solar) required to produce a product or provide a service. Thus, emergy accounts for the total energy and material flows required to support a systems network, of which EIPs are focused industrial ecological examples (Tilley, 2003).

This unique approach has not been applied at the industrial park level of analysis. In our evaluation of the literature, we were unable to find thorough emergy-based papers focusing on either theoretical or practical aspects of industrial parks (Ulgiati et al., 2007, Wang et al., 2006). We aim to fill this gap in the industrial ecology field.

The emergy analysis of industrial parks is an important tool that can be integrated within the framework of other traditional methods for energy, environmental and economic evaluation (such as life cycle analysis and material flow analysis). To achieve this goal of developing emergy analysis for industrial parks, we first introduce the concept of emergy, as well as its relevant theoretical basis. We then investigate how to perform an emergy synthesis at the industrial park level, in which we also more clearly define industrial parks and EIPs. A case study, based in Dalian, China, is presented in order to further demonstrate the feasibility of this approach. A critical analysis, including discussion of benefits, advantages and limitations of this emergy method is also presented. Further research directions are detailed.

Section snippets

Emergy analysis background

Emergy analysis and synthesis was developed over the past three decades as a tool for environmental policy and resource quality evaluation within the assessment of complex system dynamics. The theoretical and conceptual basis for emergy analysis and synthesis is grounded in thermodynamics and general systems theory. Emergy is defined as the sum of all inputs of available energy directly or indirectly required by a process to provide a given product or flow when the inputs are expressed in the

Industrial parks

According to UNIDO (1997), an industrial park can be defined as a tract of land developed and subdivided into plots according to a comprehensive plan with provision for roads, transport and public utilities for the use of a group of firms and industrial business oriented activities. In an industrial park the problems of zoning can be minimized by properly grouping various types of industrial activities, and costs of infrastructure and utilities can be reduced by concentrating activities in

A methodology for industrial parks emergy analysis

Emergy analysis is based on energy and energy quality as the main driving forces supporting systems and ecosystems. We now introduce how emergy applies to industrial park dynamics in both energy availability and energy quality aspects. In this methodology, for the case study industrial park, the emergy of renewable energies, non-renewable resources, goods, services and information are calculated as the total amount of energy flows required to make them, each one multiplied by suitable

China industrial park case study and application

In order to illustrate this method's feasibility and applicability within an industrial park, a case study is presented. The case study focuses on industrial park management within China. To set the stage for the case study we initially begin with a background of previous industrial park and environmental issues within China.

Discussion and conclusions

Developing an ecologically conscious industrial park requires analysis of both industrial and ecological systems. Traditional methods have not been able to fully meet this requirement, usually due to consideration of environmental concerns as secondary to economic objectives. Such methods focus primarily on the environmental impact of emissions and ignore the contribution of ecological products and services. Emergy analysis offers a new, complementary to other evaluation tools, thermodynamic

Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (71033004, 70772085), Chinese Academy of Science's “one hundred talent program” (2008-318), the Shenyang Scientific Research Foundation (1091147-9-00), the Liaoning Science Foundation (20092078).

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