BPS engaged Metabolic Consulting, MSH Strategy, Center for Sustainable Infrastructure, and Vibrant Future to study Portland’s industrial sector, identify best practices, and develop a roadmap for the Clean Industry Initiative.
Key findings
- Clean industry in Portland requires an integrated approach that addresses multiple aspects of the industrial sector including:
- Navigation or “concierge” services to help industrial businesses access programs and resources.
- Strong connections between industry and universities, which strengthens the workforce and improves access to emerging research and technology.
- Investments in transformative projects, such as industrial symbiosis — a model in which waste from one business becomes input for another — or new industrial technologies such as green hydrogen.
- Policy and regulation that supports the adoption of clean industry practices.
- Effective communications about industry with businesses, community, policy makers, and workers.
- Finance and funding that enables clean industry.
- Collaborative governance structures that cultivate trust and partnership between groups.
- Metals and machinery manufacturing is an area of opportunity. This sector requires high temperatures, which leads to high carbon emissions. Investing in lower-carbon technologies for this type of manufacturing would reduce local emissions and could produce heat that other businesses could use.
- Food and beverage manufacturing tends to be high in carbon emissions, air pollution, and waste. This sector typically has lower wages than other types of manufacturing, so investing here would improve environmental outcomes as well as quality of life for workers.
- Hospitals and universities generate a high volume of waste that could be recycled or reused in other processes.
- Industry in Portland uses approximately 635,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity annually, with 10.9% coming from renewable sources. Metals and machinery manufacturing is responsible for over 50 percent of industrial electricity usage.
View the full Clean Industry Study including methodology and findings:
Background and Methodology
The Portland Clean Industry Study focuses on six industry subsectors:
- Food and beverage manufacturing
- Metals and machinery manufacturing
- Electronic manufacturing
- Miscellaneous manufacturing
- Hospitals and universities
- Waste management
While hospitals and universities are not considered manufacturing, they are included in the study because they frequently have on-site power generation. Waste management businesses are included in the study because of the potential to incorporate circular economy approaches.
The study looks at the existing conditions of Portland’s industrial sector. The full report includes findings on carbon emissions, air pollution, and waste across different types of industrial businesses, hospitals, and universities. The existing conditions analysis also includes employment data on wages, business size, and projected job growth.
The recommendations are informed by global clean industry examples, and a scan of policy and finance tools. Preliminary recommendations were shared at a workshop and confirmed in the final report. Findings came from a mix of data analysis, surveys, focus groups, and interviews.