Quantifying the Environmental Performance of Industrial Symbiosis Networks: A Case Study of Industrial Symbiosis North in Aalborg - PhDData

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Quantifying the Environmental Performance of Industrial Symbiosis Networks: A Case Study of Industrial Symbiosis North in Aalborg

The thesis was published by , in January 2022, Aalborg University.

Abstract:

Background: With increasing pressure on companiesto minimize environmental impacts, this study devel-ops an applicable approach to quantify environmentalimpacts for industrial symbiosis (IS) networks, withthe purpose of supporting decision-making for symbi-otic flows, in addition to assisting in the maturing ofthe network.Methods: A case study of Industrial Symbiosis Northis carried out to develop a life cycle assessment (LCA)model based on the case context and a literature re-view of preexisting literature.Results: Results showed it possible to represent theenvironmental impacts for three taxonomic levels (i)Networks (ii) Entities (iii) Flows. The LCA results arebound by limited data quality and a narrow systemboundary. Therefore, further improving adjustmentsto the model were identified along with implementa-tion steps.Conclusion: Quantifying environmental impacts attaxonomic levels proves beneficial for creating valuepropositions for companies within the IS network. Bydoing so, the facilitating organization expands its rolefor the network in regards to supporting sustainabledevelopment in a broader sense. Applying LCA inIS networks is therefore seen as a vital step for ma-turing both the facilitating organizations and the ISnetworks.



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