Is a circular port even possible?

‘Circular port’ you say?

At Circular Flanders we hope that the phrase 'circular port' will become common currency in the public debate on the circular economy in the (sea)port sector in the coming years. The phrase itself was used for the first time during the Delta Atelier. We continued to use 'circular ports' by analogy with the phrase 'circular cities'. Since then it has also been used sparsely in the communication of ports such as Rotterdam and North Sea Port.

But 'circular ports' is more than just a catchy phrase that draws the attention in our communication. So when we talk about 'circular ports', what do we really mean, and how different is it from what we mean by 'circular cities'?

What will a circular port look like ?

Sometimes we are a little too obsessed with perfect definitions and sketches of a distant future.

(...)

Is a 100% circular port even possible?

Let's be honest about this: it won't happen anytime soon, or maybe never :)

The bottom line is that ‘circular ports’ may not be entirely possible in the sense that any port actually attain 100% circularity. The question is not whether a circular port is possible but wether we are willing to adress the challenge.

(Rising the challenge)