Industrial Symbiosis Project 2007-08
The Scottish Government offered International Synergies Ltd a total of £150,000 in 2007-08 - £100,000 from the Aggregates Levy funding and £50,000 from the Pollution Reduction and Waste Budget - to continue industrial symbiosis work in Scotland. Previously the Scottish Industrial Symbiosis Programme (SISP), this was relaunched in April 2007 as the National Industrial Symbiosis Programme Scotland (NISP Scotland). (Similar work has taken place in England as the National Industrial Symbiosis Programme.)
During 2007-08 NISP Scotland delivered support to a number of businesses throughout Scotland, enabling increased resource efficiency and productivity in all industry sectors. Industrial Symbiosis identifies opportunities for the waste products of one business to be used by another to create a new product, diverting material from landfill on a continuing basis. The values at the core of industrial symbiosis are greater efficiency in material resource use, including water and energy, contributing to an understanding of how all resources and materials can be better used - reducing business waste and increasing profits.
In addition to the funding from the Scottish Government, SEPA and Scottish Enterprise also funded NISP Scotland during 2007-08.
Specific achievements delivered in 2007-08 were:
Tonnes diverted from landfill: 46,265 tonnes;
CO2 emissions reduced, as CO2 equivalent: 28,279 tonnes;
Jobs Created: 9
Jobs secured: 0
New sales: £674,974;
Economic savings: £558,775;
Investment in Recycling Infrastructure: £750,000
Diverting material from landfill often leads to additional sales for another business. Examples delivered in 2007-08 include paper mill sludge and canal dredgings being used to produce composts and blended topsoils for sale, as well as road planings used to produce backfill material for utility works. Many of these materials were successfully used in public sector projects during 2007-08, such as topsoils for the schools rebuilding programme in Edinburgh, and the backfill for the Edinburgh Tram scheme utility diversion works.
In 2007-08 NISP Scotland introduced 277 new member organisations to the concept of industrial symbiosis, reaching 1312 member companies in Scotland out of a total of over 10,000 throughout the UK. The total number of individual contacts within Scottish companies increased by 482 from 1724 in April 2007 to 2206 in April 2008. Around 65% of new members and contacts came from NISP events or presentations and displays at other events. An increasing number of contacts were also made through effective signposting and cross-referrals between other business support programmes in Scotland, including Envirowise, Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service, Business Environment Partnership, the Energy Saving Trust, and Scottish Enterprise.
Innovation was a strong theme of NISP delivery, and during 2007-08 NISP Scotland worked closely with a number of universities in Scotland on a range of projects. One piece of work identified the feasibility of taking protein-rich materials from spent grain (a by-product of brewing and whisky manufacture) and using this as an alternative ingredient in fish meal used in the Scottish aquaculture industry.
Based on a first successful 'Construction Quick Wins' synergy workshop held in Edinburgh in February 2007, a second workshop was held in Glasgow in November 2007. In addition a 'Food and Drink Quick Wins' synergy workshop was held at Bellshill in September 2007. Both of these events attracted a very good turnout of businesses and identified significant landfill diversion potential, as well as cost savings. In addition to the 'Construction' and 'Food and Drink' sectoral focus workshops, NISP Scotland also held two regional events in partnership with local membership networks. In February 2008 an Aberdeen event was delivered in conjunction with the Business Environment Partnership, and in March 2008 a Fife event was held with Green Business Fife. Both of these regional events attracted an attendance of over 50 and substantial numbers of cross-sector synergies were identified during them.
The NISP programme hoped to continue to work closely with member companies and organisations in Scotland to deliver significant cost savings by diverting materials from landfill and creating additional sales, demonstrating that environmental improvement makes sound business sense.
Contact
NISP Scotland, 62a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3SA
Tel: 0131 556 8013
www.nisp.org.uk