Trzy oblicza parku ekoprzemysłowego w Hartbergu

Abstract

An eco-industrial park, shortly an eco-park, is the special and organised form of the industrial ecosystem. Business activities of its members are directed towards more efficient utilisation of raw materials and energy so as to go with the rules of sustainable development. There are severa! tens of eco-parks in Europe, of which the one established in Hartberg, a small town in East Styria (Austria), belongs to the group of the most active eco-parks in establishing of the symbiotic relationships between its participants. Hartberg Oekopark was established in 1997 on the post-industrial area (former brickyard) owing to the initiative of the local municipalities (Stadtwerke Hartberg). The owners denounce Oekopark Hartberg as industrial, research and adventure park based on the idea of sustainability. These are the three pillars, upon which Oekopark Hartberg was designed and operates. One of the most important members of Oekopark Hartberg are the energetic companies, which have cooperated with the municipality and the eco-park since its beginning. They created Energiezentrale The activity of these companies is strongly focused on the production of energy from the renewable resources. Solar energy, energy from biomass (incineration of wooden pellets) and energy from biomethane (biogas) are the green energy sources that are utilised in Oekopark Hartberg. Biomethane is produced from the anaerobie digestion of the organie fraction of municipal solid waste and for this purpose the cooperation between the energetic companies and waste collecting and processing companies was established. These are elear examples of symbiotic relationships between eco-park members. In Oekopark Hartberg there are also about thirty other members of various business activities, mainly trade and service, but also manufacturing, small and medium enterprises. They all utilise the energy, which is produced by energetic companies. One of them utilises waste paper from the eco-park and other external sources to produce cellulose insulations. The research pillar of Oekopark Hartberg is strongly supported by Ioanneum Reaserch, which is the biggest Austrian non-university research institution. It is engaged in various scientific programmes and supports the companies located in the eco-park. The entertainment ( adventure) activities are focused on the education of people in the area of environmental protection and sustainable development. There are 3D cinema, expositions (bionics, Leonardo da Vinci) and interactive entertainment. The visitors can produce paper or polish up the minerals on their own.