The Sotenäs Symbiosis Center, together with partners from businesses, academy and other actors, have been actively working towards implementing and developing an industrial symbiosis (IS) network in Sotenäs, Sweden since... [ view full abstract ]
The Sotenäs Symbiosis Center, together with partners from businesses, academy and other actors, have been actively working towards implementing and developing an industrial symbiosis (IS) network in Sotenäs, Sweden since 2013. Through facilitation, a number of synergies between industrial actors in the industrial symbiosis network have been realized, and several exchanges are awaiting permits in order to implement the necessary infrastructure to allow for the exchanges to ensue. More specifically, the network revolves around several fishing, fish processing industries, algae production, an upcoming biogas and wastewater treatment project and a land-based salmon farm. This study aims to disseminate the knowledge from the facilitation of the current network and highlight the environmental and socio-economic benefits created from the symbiotic network. The study reviews the development of the symbiosis network from a current (reference) state, to the more developed network in the future; thus reviewing the evolution and potential benefits. The socio-economic assessment builds on previous approaches, and partially based on interviews with stakeholders involved, in order to assess direct and indirect impacts of the network. These include, but are not limited to, e.g. direct and indirect job creation, revenue, visitors, outreach, research support and business value. The environmental performance assessment follows life cycle assessment approaches to quantify both GHG emissions and eutrophication impacts, of the network and allocated to the individual firms (to assess their benefit from being in the symbiosis network).
Results indicate that both environmental and socio-economic benefits have large potential value for the region. Based on the socio-economic metrics from the current state (and evolution), the development of the IS network through the Sotenäs Symbiosis center has the potential for an increase in jobs, additional synergies, visitors and outreach in the scientific community. Other qualitative aspects such as the importance of the facilitating role, cooperation and identify are also reviewed. The environmental benefits are particularly important to highlight, as nutrients from wastewater are valorized through a number of processes, leading to large reductions of potential eutrophication impacts to the sea. In comparison to a reference system, there are also large reductions of greenhouse gas emissions, and benefits to nearly all firms in the network. Central to the system, the biogas plant act as an “upcycling tenant” in the IS network to further improve environmental benefits through waste water and by-product handling in addition to replacing and supplying tradition forms of heat and fertilizer.
Results from the project will be important to spread to further municipalities in order speed up their local work with facilitating industrial symbiosis and other synergies.
Keywords: industrial symbiosis, LCA, socio-economic, salmon farming, bioenergy
5g. Special Track - Industrial symbiosis, networking and cooperation as part of industrial
