The greening of industrial property developments in South Africa

The greening of industrial property in the developing world context of South Africa is under examination. In particular, the focus is specifically on green property developments and planning for eco-industrial parks. The South African record on greening industrial property is situated as part of broader international scholarship and debates around eco-industrial parks. The analysis reveals South Africa currently is far behind a number of other emerging economies in terms of the making of eco-industrial parks. Driven by cost considerations and the image demands of international investors a process of the greening of industrial property developments in urban areas is taking root in the country. Nevertheless, at present there exists no eco-industrial parks using principles of industrial ecology that can parallel those in other parts of the world. Overall, it is shown that planning for eco-industrial parks is in its infancy in South Africa.