October marks National Reuse Month, a waste prevention initiative to raise awareness about the economic and environmental benefits of reusing everyday items and materials that would otherwise go to waste.
An Irish publicly funded initiative is providing a free ‘reuse’ service for businesses not just for October, but year round. SMILE (Saving Money through Industry Links and Exchanges) is Ireland’s free, award winning, national Industrial Symbiosis programme.
SMILE provides a platform for businesses to connect and identify synergies which encourages the exchanging of resources between businesses. SMILE aims to cut costs, reduce wastes, source materials, identify new business opportunities and improve competitiveness. Their ethos is that one company’s waste is another one’s treasure.
Recently SMILE has facilitated technical assistance which is delivered by a consultant based in each of the three waste management regions in Ireland i.e. the Southern Waste Management region, the Eastern Midlands Waste Management region and the Connacht Ulster Waste Management region. Their role is to liaise and meet with businesses, assess their waste streams and identify potential synergies where a waste in one business could be a raw material in another business.
The first step towards resource exchange between organisations is where the Industrial Symbiosis service identifies organisations with redundant resources and synergy potential. Potential matches are identified and organisations enter into discussions to investigate the viability of synergy. Industrial symbiosis is described as “the sharing of services, utility and by-product resources among industries in order to add value, reduce costs and improve the environment.
The SMILE team then support the negotiations between the companies to allow the synergy to progress and the service offered helps to overcome any obstacles to ensure success. Any required trial is completed and deal is agreed and then resource flow between organisations is initiated. Finally, the Industrial Symbiosis service verifies the cost benefit data including; co2 reduction, landfill savings, job creation and investment generated.
There are a number of case studies which demonstrate industrial symbiosis internationally and in Ireland, which show how the move from a linear economy to a circular economy is invaluable.
One case study in Munster resulted in Ocon Chemicals donating over 100 pieces of office furniture to the Northside for Business Initiative, over €10,000 worth of materials were reused, a saving which in turn also created indirect job creation.
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY
This systems approach to a more sustainable and integrated industrial economy, identifies business opportunities to improve resource utilisation and works with businesses of all sizes and from all sectors. The SMILE Industrial Symbiosis consultants provide advice, support and guidance to businesses on resource efficiency, legislation and waste management.
SMILE is managed by Macroom E, a Cork County Council initiative and is supported by the Environmental Protection Agency, Cork County Council, Cork City Council, Local Enterprise Offices, Southern Region Waste Management Office, Eastern Midlands Waste Management Office, Connacht Ulster Waste Management Office and South Dublin County Council.
