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The Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Council (MOVRC) is beginning preliminary evaluation of a possible eco-industrial park (EIP)
proposed for development near Spencer.
A series of meetings are scheduled in March with business leaders, government officials and community leaders regarding
the potential for development.
The park would be home to companies that utilize biomass such as wood wastes and other industry by-products, farm
products grown for the purpose, as well as other organic materials from municipal waste collection or sewage plants. Tenants
would convert such biomass materials into bio-energy and bio-materials.
The owner of the site and project developer for this eco-park is Boggs Aviation, LLC of Spencer.
The study, funded by US Economic Development Administration, will seek answers to three main questions:
Are there reliable sources of biomass at a scale adequate to supply a commercially successful processing system?
Could such companies market their products economically from this site?
What firms would be potential tenants and how well tested are their technologies?
A team from RPP International will work with MOVRC to gather answers from local sources of organic materials, potential
customers, and other stakeholders in the region. RPP played a major role in developing the eco-park concept and has
supported projects in the US, South Africa, and Asia.
Their Handbook for Eco-Industrial Park Development provides this definition:
An eco-industrial park or estate is a community of manufacturing and service businesses located together on a common
property. Member businesses seek enhanced environmental, economic, and social performance through collaboration in
managing environmental and resource issues . . . Components of this approach include green design of park infrastructure
and plants (new or retrofitted); cleaner production, pollution prevention; energy efficiency; and inter-company partnering. An
EIP also seeks benefits for neighboring communities to assure that the net impact of its development is positive.
With a core recruitment theme of biomass processing, a Spencer EIP could produce ethanol, methane, and electricity, as
well as organic green chemicals, and the more familiar soil products.
The study team will also consider other potential businesses that could be successful tenants. What local forest and farm
resources could open opportunities for enterprise development and employment? Are local entrepreneurs interested in
developing such companies?
The outcome of this study will determine what next steps should be taken toward development of the Spencer site. Is there
an adequate economic foundation for conducting a full real estate feasibility study? Is the biomass processing theme likely to
succeed or should other recruitment targets be the focus?
To find out more about eco-industrial parks visit RPP's Indigo Development web site: www.indigodev.com. The latest
version of the EIP Handbook is available at: http://www.indigodev.com/ADBHBdownloads.html
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