Effective factors on application of industrial symbiosis in : case study of Mab-Ta-Phut Industrial Estate

Abstract

Mab-Ta-Phut Industrial Estate (MTPIE) is a famous industrial estate located in Rayong province, eastern part of Thailand. Though most industries in the MTPIE have been continuously developing and implementing waste and environmental management system to comply with national regulation, more than 700,000 tons per year of waste are still emitted. Therefore, a new concept to manage waste by creating network for materials and/or energy exchange among industries, which is so-called ‘Industrial Symbiosis’, has been considered as an alternative system providing benefits for both social, economic, and environment. The industrial symbiosis also leads to resource efficiency improvement as well as competitive advantages because wastes or by-products from one firm can be transformed into valuable inputs of another; hence, material flow would be changed from a linear one (where raw material is consumed and waste is generated) into a circular one. Industrial symbiosis has been implemented in various countries and one of successful and well-known case is Kalundborg’s Industrial Park in Denmark, while many cases cannot be effectively implemented. Therefore, effective factors for implementation of industrial symbiosis in industrial estate were investigated in this study by using Mab-Ta-Phut Industrial Estate as a case study. The study was carried out with questionnaires, in-depth interview, and site survey, both factories in MTPIE and waste processor plants in Saraburi Province. It’s found that effective factors for industrial symbiosis implementation are policy on zero waste, zero landfill, and process adjustment willingness; financial mechanism and initiator available. Whereas, factors related to technology and public participation are not so effective for the case of industrial estate. Therefore, a model for effective implementation of Thailand’s industrial estate has been formulated and modified upon experts’ consideration by using a Delphi Technique.