Descriptive model and evaluation system to locate sustainable industrial areas

The application of the industrial ecology to industrial areas implies re-defining the design and development process of these areas to minimize the environmental impacts along its life cycle. The development of industrial areas include several phases, one of them is the location decision that is one of the most important, since it will determine the park operation. For a long time, the location theories have only considered the proximity to raw materials, existence of basic infrastructures and qualified manpower. Nevertheless, the new model of sustainable development demands to realize a planning that defines and integrates the different subsystems and influential aspects. The aim of this work is to create a conceptual descriptive model to locate sustainable industrial areas. This model is based on long-established factors and new strategies and experiences of sustainability. The second step is the establishment of a diffuse evaluation system that determines the fulfilment of defined sustainable criteria. This model makes the planning process for the decision-makers easier through a system that considers multiple criteria that converge in order to get the balance of industrial activities with the environment. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.