In 2008 two master thesis students of the catholic university of Leuven (KUL) have developed a method for making an existing industrial park carbon neutral, in cooperation with POM WF. This method was based on a case study: industrial estate Herdersbrug in Bruges.
Here you can find a summary of this thesis:
The industrial park of Herdersbrug (Brugge, Belgium) comprises 92 small and medium-sized enterprises, a waste-to energy incinerator and a power plant (not included in the study) on its site. In order to study the “CO2 neutrality” of the park, a park-wide inventory was made of the CO2 emissions corresponding to energy (electricity and fossil fuel) consumption and waste incineration in the Herdersbrug industrial park in 2007, and of the existing renewable energy generation. The definition of CO2 neutrality in Flanders only considers CO2 released as a consequence of consumption or generation of electricity, not the CO2 emitted when fossil fuel is consumed for heat generation. To further decrease or avoid CO2 emissions, measures to increase renewable energy generation are projected and evaluated.
Herdersbrug industrial park is CO2 neutral, according to the definition of the Flemish government (only electricity consumption/production, not heating). From the CO2 released as a consequence of fossil fuel consumption and waste incineration, only 4.7 % is neutralised by existing and projected measures. From the total CO2 emission (149 kton) corresponding to the energy consumption of the Herdersbrug industrial park in 2007, 93 kton or 62 % can be neutralised by existing and projected renewable energy generated on the park. 45 % of the yearly avoided CO2 corresponds to renewable energy generated from waste treatment.
POM WF and KUL decided to spread these results at several national and international conferences and have informed the Flemish government about how it would be more appropriate to include heating in their subsidy mechanism for funding industrial parks carbon neutral.
On the 22nd April 2010 in Bruges, these results were presented to the interested businesses located on Herdersbrug in a 'tailor made' way. POM WF specifically highlighted the high potential energy techniques as proposed in the thesis, such as codigestion of business waste, infrared images (thermography), insulation and relighting, and corresponding subsidy mechanisms.
Host company was Philips (tv & lightning technology), they were proud to present their environmental policy.