From Eco-Industrial Park to Eco-Agricultural Park in the Peri-Urban Context: A Proposal

With the growing environmental concern, there is evidence that increasing the symbiotic relationship between companies in the same industrial area highly contributes to the more sustainable development of industrial activities. These principles inspired the concept of Eco-Industrial Park (EIP). A lot of EIP examples and realisations already exist throughout the world, and a lot of Eco-Industrial Park proposals are in progress achieved through different methods that can support the creation of exchange networks in these Parks before their design and construction. The scientific community can consider the symbiotic relationship of Eco-Industrial Parks in the Peri-Urban context. The application of the principles of industrial symbiosis in the agricultural sector is an important and, above all, necessary change to transform society, face future challenges, and become more resilient to crises. However, this change requires innovative business models that must make use of the broad involvement of all actors in the agricultural supply chain. Therefore, the work aims to would highlight how the principles of Eco-Industrial Parks can favour the realisation of Eco-Agricultural Parks through sustainable and innovative practices, initiatives, and performances in the Peri-Urban context. An additional objective is to analyse the implementation of symbiotic relationships starting at a Dairy Farm in a South Italian Region, in order to the potential benefits to in-house production areas, neighbouring companies, and the local community through the Eco-Agricultural Park in the Peri-Urban context.