Displaying items by tag: Emissions

US: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has approved a request by Holcim US to use more petcoke at its integrated Midlothian plant. Local health and environmental campaigners had hoped to challenge the decision at a meeting in late March 2021, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram newspaper. The changes will enable the company, part of Switzerland-based LafargeHolcim, to more than double the plant’s carbon monoxide (CO) emissions to 7000t/yr. 35 local residents submitted requests for a hearing to query the application. Holcim US was identified from state data as the leading emitter of industrial pollutants in North Texas in 2019.

Switzerland: Dürr is supplying a regenerative thermal oxidation system (RTO) to Jura Cement Fabriken integrated plant in Wildegg as the main stage in its air pollution control system. The upgrade is intended to enable the cement producer to comply with anticipated lower gas emission limits for carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and ammonia (NH₃). The supplier says its solution combines Dürr’s Ecopure RTO multiple-chamber principle with an optimisation of the existing process technology in the calciner. It is scheduled to start operation in 2022.

Jura Cement operates two integrated plants in Switzerland. It is part of the Switzerland-based Jura Materials Group, which has been part of the Ireland-based CRH since 2000.

Spain: The Spanish cement association Oficemen has targeted a 43% emissions drop by 2030 across its entire value chain compared to 1990 levels. The objective has been published as part of the association’s sustainability roadmap to 2050. It is a tightening of the previous target of 27% by 2030. Oficemen intends to meet the tougher reduction by using the so-called 5C approach - clinker, cement, concrete, construction and built environment, and (re)carbonation – as detailed by Cembureau, the European Cement Association. Oficemen also revealed that it is working with the Spanish Technological Platform for CO₂ (PTECO₂) on identifying potential locations for storing captured CO₂. Hugo Morán, Secretary of State for the Environment, participated remotely with the launch event.

Oficemen also reports that Spanish cement consumption fell by 12% year-on-year to 12.2Mt in the first 11 months of 2020. Exports declined by 5%.

India: The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) has fined ACC subsidiary Madukkarai Cement US$61,000 for fugitive emissions of clinker and cement dust in mid-2020. The Hindu newspaper has reported that inspections found dust in the village Kurumbapalayam, Coimbatore District, located on the eastern side of the cement plant. An ambient air quality survey in September 2020 revealed higher-than-prescribed particulate volumes.

In addition to paying the fine, the producer must comply with 19 instructions of the TNPCB for air pollution control and monitoring by 7 January 2021.

Italy: The Italian cement and concrete association Federbeton says that investments in sustainable technologies in domestic cement production totalled Euro110m between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2019. This reduced carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by 311,000t in 2019 alone, up by 12% year-on-year from the reduction in 2018. An increased alternative fuel (AF) substitution rate of 6.7% in 2019 contributed to the reduction, up by 0.7% from 6.6%. Producers’ full-year AF consumption was 1.6Mt.

Zimbabwe: The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has ordered Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe to stop operations at its integrated Harare plant due to abnormal dust emissions. As part of the order the plant has been requested to notify local stakeholders and the community of any new developments or incident that may affect them, according to the NewsDay newspaper. It will also be required to report daily dust emissions readings to the EMA every two weeks.

The cement producer said it experienced an unexpected surge in dust emissions during a trial of using saw dust as an alternative fuel at the plant between July 30 and 1 August 2020. It added that immediate action was taken to control and contain the emissions and the incident was reported to EMA in line with regulatory requirements.

US: Dragon Products has been fined US$67,000 by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection for exceeding air emissions regulations since 2013. Ammonia, carbon monoxide and particulate matter levels were all breeched, according to the Bangor Daily News newspaper. Other irregularities with standards were also noted, such as baghouse inlet temperature limits and clinker cooler opacity standards.

China: China Tianrui Group has reported gross CO₂ emissions per tonne of cement of 910kg/t in 2019 in its latest sustainability report. Nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions were 7862t and 1380t, year-on-year decreases of 13% and 4% respectively. Its water consumption intensity decreased by 42% year-on-year to 1.12Mm3.

The group operates 20 clinker production lines and 59 cement grinding production lines. Its production capacity of clinker and cement was 28.4Mt tonnes and 56.7Mt respectively in 2019. Its plants are based in Henan, Liaoning, Anhui and Tianjin, with Henan and Liaoning accounting for the largest proportion.

Canada: Residents at Port-Daniel-Gascons in Quebec reported dust emissions from the McInnis Cement plant in June and July 2020. This has been blamed on mechanical breakdowns and a computer failure, according to the Journal de Québec newspaper. The cement producer says it has reported the situation to the local authorities. Commercial production at the plant started in mid-2017. The incidents reportedly took place as the plant reached its maximum production capacity.

China: Henan Province has announced a planned rise in water and energy tariffs for cement producers that fail to meet current emissions standards and clean transportation requirements. Reuters News has reported that companies subject to the measures will pay US$0.07 – US$0.14/m3 more for water and up to US$0.01/kWh more for electricity. Henan enacted ‘ultra-low’ emissions limits of 10Mg/Nm³ of dust, 50Mg/Nm3 of NO_x and 100Mg/Nm³ of SO₂ in 2018. Cement plants in the province produce 105Mt/yr of cement.