Canada's National Industrial Symbiosis Program builds business-to-business connections that identify opportunities for waste re-purposing and other forms of resource collaboration, thereby creating economic, environmental and social benefits to businesses and surrounding communities.
Industrial Symbiosis
The principle behind Industrial Symbiosis is quite simple:
Instead of being thrown away or destroyed, surplus resources generated by one business or industry are captured then redirected for use as “new” inputs by one or more other companies, providing a mutual benefit or symbiosis.
These mutually profitable links are not restricted to materials, they include resources such as: energy, wastewater, transportation, asset utilization, expertise.
NISP - Canada
Established by International Synergies LTD. in the UK, NISP® has a tried-and-true method of creating Industrial Symbiosis opportunities. Through independent verification and studies NISP® has been found to be the most cost effective and efficient program for delivering economic, social and environmental benefits. NISP® Canada will demonstrate that comparable benefits can be achieved in Canada and will inform the model for a long term and fully national program.
NISP® Canada is funded by all three levels of government: federally through Western Economic Diversification; provincially via Innovate BC and the BC Ministries of Agriculture and Energy; and at the municipal level through Metro Vancouver, and the cities of Edmonton, New Westminster, and Surrey.
Interested in participating in the NISP Canadian Pilot?
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"Industrial Symbiosis presents a great opportunity to reduce our ecological footprint while improving our business efficiency."
- J. Thwaites, LUSH Cosmetics
"NISP has shifted my view of waste from being a liability to being an asset."
- V. Chiu, World of Walas
"… found the event very useful and gratifying; it gave me options to find solutions."
- M. Lozano, Faculty Brewing Co.
"Great concept for cross sector efficiency improvements."
- C. Kiff, Kruger