The Executive's Sustainable Action Fund (using proceeds of the Aggregates Levy) provided £100,000 in 2002-03 and £100,000 in 2003-04 to the Business Council for Sustainable Development to support a Scottish Industrial Symbiosis Programme (SISP).
In November 2003 BCSD were granted a further £22,500 to assist expansion of its operations in Scotland supporting the sustainable development agenda.
The idea of industrial symbiosis is that local companies co-operate to achieve greater resource efficiency by reducing resource input costs and waste management costs, and identifying new products. For example, waste materials or surplus heat and power from one company can be an input to the manufacturing process of another. The Danish town of Kaloundburg is an example of a place where such linkages have developed.
It has its roots in Industrial Ecology and primarily focuses on resource minimisation and utilisation through the co-operation and co-ordination of businesses. Developing commercially viable synergies (in areas such as materials use, human resources, energy/water use and logistics) can generate economic, social and environmental benefits to business, Government and communities.
The Business Council for Sustainable Development-UK (BCSD-UK) is a network of businesses committed to delivering action on sustainable development (with members including Arup, BP, British Industrial Plastics, ConocoPhillips, Corus, Dupont, Eversheds, Lafarge, Scottish & Newcastle, Shell, Vivendi). BCSD initiated a series of meetings in Scotland to look at the opportunity to develop and implement an Industrial Symbiosis Programme based on three regional initiatives in the west, east and north-east of the country.
A study concluded that there was significant opportunity for the development of a national industrial symbiosis project for Scotland, without duplicating or compromising existing projects, and that there was a number of organisations already committed to resource management optimisation which could be important players in development of such an initiative.
SISP, which moved to a second phase over 2004-07, is linked to the UK National Industrial Symbiosis Programme (NISP) also developed by BCSD.
Expected outputs of the Scottish Industrial Symbiosis Programme included:
- 100,000 tonnes diverted from landfill;
- CO2 reductions - no initial target figure but any identified reductions to be 'captured' as part of the programme;
- 50 companies involved.
By March 2004 progress had been made on potential synergies. 120 organisations had become involved, including attendance at events, and some 100,000 tonnes of material were under negotiation. One example of a line of communication opened up was between a glass reprocessor and the separate owners/ operators of the Forth Bridges for glass shotblast to replace existing environmentally unfriendly material. Another was for dried sewage sludge pellets from Scottish Water to be used as fuel in a cement manufacturer's furnaces.
This initiative was conceived and driven by business in the shape of BCSD. This was about business seeking sustainable and profitable solutions. - exactly the type of programme that must be developed in Scotland. Economic growth is essential if we are to maintain our quality of life but it cannot continue to come at the expense of our environment.
The Scottish Industrial Symbiosis Programme, which continues over 2004-07, puts the principles of sustainable development into practice for the benefit of both our economy and the environment. This means creating less waste through better resource use efficiency and developing sustainable consumption processes. We have to leave behind our disposable culture.
Contact
Business Council for Sustainable Development
Unit F3
The Arch
48-52 Floodgate Street
Birmingham
B5 5SL
www.bcsd-uk.co.uk