An emergy ternary diagram approach to evaluate circular economy implementation of eco-industrial parks

Abstract

Eco-industrial parks could play a positive role in reducing consumption of natural resources and environmental pollution by circular economic development, improving the ecological environment, and enhancing the capacity for sustainable development of economic development zones. However, assessing the ecological and economic efficiency of eco-industrial parks inevitably encounters difficulties, such as the comparability of analysis objects, the unification of dimensions, and the determination of the scope of calculations. These problems can be solved based on emergy analysis methods, specifically by the collection of information on the natural environment, geography, society, and economy of industrial parks. Furthermore, the analysis of the status quo of eco-economy systems in eco-industrial parks can be conducted by means of emergy analysis. This paper analyzes the circular economic sustainability of Shenyang Economic and Technological Development Zone by the emergy ternary diagram. Eco-industrial parks can be scientifically planned to improve the structure, function, and efficiency of the park’s complex ecosystem. The method of emergy ternary diagram can effectively evaluate the eco-economic efficiency of the industrial agglomeration area. An emergy ternary diagram intuitively reflects the system’s resource allocation. With the aid of the emergy ternary diagram, the analysis on the relationship between the ratio of energy use of system resources and the indicators can not only fully evaluate the sustainability of the existing industrial agglomeration system, but also can predict the future development direction of the system. For the selection of development paths, more explicit direction indications and references are provided, and the application of the emergy theory is more scientific in program optimization, decision-making, and selection.