1. Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
2nd ed.
Jonathan M. Harris
Updates for 2011
Chapter 17: Industrial Ecology
Copyright © 2011 Jonathan M. Harris

2. Figure 17.1: “Straight-Line” Pattern of Traditional Industrial Processes
Industrial ecology seeks to replace the “straight-line” perception of industrial processes as transforming raw materials into outputs and wastes with a view of industrial activity as a subset of broader ecosystems, attempting in part to replicate the self-regenerating character of those ecosystems.

3. Figure 17.2: Cyclic Production Processes of Industrial Ecology
The simplest industrial ecology concept is a closed circle, with all wastes being reused within the cycle. This imitates the patterns of natural cycles in which wastes (such as dead biomass) become raw material for new growth.

4. Figure 17.3: The Total Industrial Ecology Cycle
Due to the complexity of industrial processes, there are many opportunities for introducing closed loops at the materials, manufacturing, consuming, and disposal stages. Materials can be recycled from a later back to an earlier stage of the production process.

5. Figure 17.4: Beverage Bottle Industrial Life Cycle
In this example, beverage bottles and their materials can be recycled to make new bottles or other products, but the cycle is not perfect – some products ultimately end up in landfill or incineration.

6. Figure 17.5: The Economic “Straight-Line” View of Agricultural Production
A similar analysis can be applied to industrial agriculture. In the pursuit of “efficient” production of output, market incentives drive large-scale agricultural producers to maximize salable crop output from an input “package” of seeds, fertilizer, pesticides, and irrigation water.

7. Figure 17.6: The Ecological View of Agroecological Cycles
A more ecologically-oriented view of agriculture sees agricultural production as a subsystem of a broader ecosystem including nutrient cycling, interactions between animal and plant culture, and efficient capture of solar energy.

8. Figure 17.7: Feedback Loops in an Integrated Farming System
An integrated farming system based on industrial ecology principles includes crops, animals, fish, algae, plankton, recycling of wastes, and production of energy resources such as biogas in addition to food and feed crops. Efficient water use leads to recharge rather than overdraft of aquifers, and farmers take advantage of beneficial natural organisms like earthworms. Unfortunately, the incentives to develop many of these feedback loops are lacking in market-based agricultural systems, so specific policies to encourage ecologically beneficial agriculture are needed.

9. Figure 17.8: World Materials Production, 1963-1995
World materials production has increased steadily, more than doubling between 1963 and (The temporary decline observed in is a result of the oil crises of the late 1970s, but has since been reversed. Increased demand for materials from China and other rapidly developing economies is likely to continue to fuel the upward trend.

10. Figure 17.9: Declining Energy Intensity in Industrial Economies, 1970-2002
A major goal of industrial ecology is reduction in materials and energy use. Greater efficiency is indicated by a reduction in energy and resource intensity (energy and resource use per unit of GDP). As the graph shows, energy intensity declined in all developed economies between 1970 and 2002 (using 1970 as a base year index). In general, the rate of decline in energy intensity was less than the rate of GDP growth, resulting in higher overall energy use. Nonetheless, the reduction in energy intensity points the way to a more efficient industrial ecology – if the rate of reduction could be increased sufficiently to outpace GDP growth.

11. Energy Intensity- Btu per Year 2005 U.S. Dollars (1991 base year)
Figure 17.9 update: Declining Energy Intensity in
Industrial Economies,
Energy Intensity- Btu per Year 2005 U.S. Dollars (1991 base year)
The trend of declining energy intensity in industrialized economies has continued through Note that since all countries’ energy intensities are given relative to a 1991 base, those that are already more energy-efficient in absolute terms (such as Japan) may have greater difficulty achieving even greater efficiencies. All the countries listed did decline significantly in intensity over the period, however, suggesting that further declines are technologically possible and could be accelerated by appropriate policies.
Year
Source: US Energy Information Administration (EIA), 2011,

12. Figure 17.10: Industrial Linkages at Kalundborg
The Kalundborg industrial system in Denmark has been designed to maximize industrial ecology linkages. Cogeneration of electric power and heat, reuse of wastes, water recycling, and capture of waste heat for district heating and fish farming characterize the system. Strict environmental regulations have encouraged firms to seek out these linkages and opportunities to reuse wastes. This industrial system could serve as a model for efforts to develop industrial ecology and reduce material and energy use elsewhere.