Assessing resource productivity for industrial parks using adjusted raw material consumption (ARMC)

Conventional resource productivity (RP) evaluation methods for industrial parks (IPs) are usually limited in scope, as they do not differentiate between the different types of resources. The real resource consumption and environmental impact were usually hidden. In response to this limitation, the Adjusted Raw Material Consumption (ARMC) method was introduced. The method took upstream production efficiency and resource grades into consideration. In this way, equivalent primary resource consumption (EPRC) was applied. In this paper, a set of equivalent coefficients estimation methods was established. Tianjin Economic-Technological and Development Area (TEDA) were chosen as a case study to demonstrate the application of ARMC method. By comparison with conventional methods, the ARMC method broadens the scope for calculating resource consumption by including upstream mining and refining of primary resources. It reveals the real resource consumption structure and determines key resource for holistic improvements to RP. Analysis on TEDA shows it has not yet fully achieved full decoupling between resource consumption and economic growth. Several industrial symbiosis activities have already been implemented to reduce aluminum and lead consumptions in TEDA. To more quickly achieve a greater increase in RP, and thus decoupling, efforts to reduce iron and copper consumptions should be made simultaneously. This evaluation is particularly beneficial for IPs, and for the government to promote more targeted measures to improve resource efficiency. This study was first attempt to assess resource consumption structure in IPs using ARMC method. Based on the results, a management procedure for IPs to improve RP value was developed.