Affiliations: Husky Energy, 707 8th Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3G7,
Canada | Department of Civil Engineering, University of
Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada | Department of Civil Engineering, University of New
Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Abstract: Fuzzy cognitive maps are used as an automated decision aid to better
assess how change in one component of a system affects the other components of
the same system. To illustrate the advantage of this method, a conceptual model
of an eco-industrial park is presented and the fuzzy cognitive mapping approach
is used to analyze the impacts of this model. The model of the eco-industrial
park is a collection of industries and companies that agree to co-exist for the
purpose of maintaining a sustainable economic posture in the use of natural
resources and in the minimization of wastes. Industries such as a steam
co-generation plant, an asphalt refinery, a salt cavern, a fish farm, and
various feedlots are contained in this conceptual model. The impact assessment
presented involves a total of 18 various kinds of interdependencies between and
among these various industries. Impacts such as pollution, waste disposal,
employment, transportation, available land, school facilities, population
growth, and other economic issues are all considered in the assessment of the
impacts the eco-industrial park will have on the local community and the
economy of a region that straddles northeastern Alberta and northwestern
Saskatchewan, Canada. The fuzzy cognitive mapping approach is used to analyze
the intricacies of these relationships and how they are likely to affect each
other.
Keywords: fuzzy cognitive mapping, impact assessment, sustainable development, eco-industrial parks
