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Displaying items by tag: Environment
Cimpor launches new plant in Cameroon
22 July 2024Cameroon: Cimpor has inaugurated its new plant in Kribi, Cameroon. Following investments in Côte d'Ivoire, Cimpor embarked on this greenfield project in February 2020, integrating the ‘world's first’ operational flash calcined clay production line, launched on 29 October 2023.
Cimpor Cameroun now has an output of 1.2Mt/yr of cement and 0.4Mt/yr of calcined clay. Cimpor's calcined clay production technology - ‘deOHclay’ – reportedly saves up to 80% in CO2 emissions, up to 35% in electricity consumption and up to 40% in thermal energy consumption per tonne. Compared to a plant with a similar capacity, this technology could reduce CO2 emissions by around 0.2Mt/yr, according to the company. The new plant will reduce the country’s dependence on imports to meet local cement needs.
US: Heidelberg Materials has won negotiation for up to US$5m in funding from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a web-based tool for cement facilities to produce Environmental Product Declarations (EPD). The funding is part of the EPA’s grant initiative to report and reduce emissions from the manufacture of construction materials, which awarded nearly US$160m to 38 recipients nationally.
UK: Cemex UK has announced the publication of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for its cement products manufactured at the Rugby and Tilbury plants. The EPDs are for the cement delivered in bulk tankers, covering over 80% of its manufactured cements.
Head of sustainability for Cemex Europe, Paul Fletcher, said "Achieving third-party verification through the International EPD System provides independent and transparent information of our cement’s environmental performance over the entire lifecycle of the product."
Mexico advances tyre recycling for cement production
05 July 2024Mexico: The Secretariat of the Environment (Sedema) has reported that over 5600 tyres collected from illegal dumps in the districts of Xochimilco and Gustavo Madero have been transported to a treatment plant to be used as an alternative fuel for cement production. This initiative is part of a strategy to manage tyre waste, supported by a collaboration with Geocycle Mexico. The effort aims to address public environmental issues caused by tyre disposal in public spaces and environmentally sensitive areas, potentially leading to wildfires. Sedema also plans to expand tyre collection through the Reciclatrón Program to promote comprehensive waste management and reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and mineral extraction.
Zimbabwe: Bulawayo City Council has turned down Labenmon Investments' application to establish a cement grinding plant in Cowdray Park, citing ‘significant’ environmental risks. The plant had an expected output of 900,000t/yr. The council stated the proposed site's proximity to residential areas posed potential pollution hazards, leading to the suggestion of relocation to Umguza District. Concerns were also raised regarding the choice of a foreign company over local alternatives like PPC Cement.
Kenya: Cemtech, a subsidiary of Devki Group, has submitted an Environmental Impact Assessment report to the National Environment Management Authority for a new clinker plant in Kitui County. The company aims to receive approval from the Kenyan government to establish the plant, according to the Business Daily newspaper. The company says that the plant will boost local cement production and increase employment opportunities.
US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has voiced its concerns over the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s newly finalised standard for particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5). The new standard reduces the level of particulate matter below 2.5μm diameter permitted in flue gas emissions to 9μg/m3 from 12μg/m3. The PCA says that it is concerned that the new rule may restrict US cement producers’ operations and ‘further complicate’ their efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
President and CEO Mike Ireland said “This new rule strikes at the heart of the US cement industry's ability to deliver on the Biden Administration's infrastructure goals, as it would lead to fewer hours of operation at plants, which would mean layoffs, as well as less American cement and concrete at a time when the country needs more.” He added “The previous EPA standard on particulate matter emissions — arrived at by government officials working with industry — significantly drove down those emissions by 37% over the last 20 years. This downward trend would have continued without the new standard imposed."
However, EPA administrator Michael Stanley Regan said that the updated standard will prevent 4500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays annually by 2032. Regan said “We do not have to sacrifice people to have a prosperous and booming economy.”
Kenya: Mashujaa Cement plans to build a US$77.4m integrated cement plant at Chasimba, Kilifi South. The Standard newspaper has reported that environmental group Nature Kenya claims that Mashujaa Cement’s environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) for the upcoming plant ‘lacked comprehensive assessments’ of its possible impacts. These include a possible threat to 31 critically endangered local plant species, including Kenya’s endemic African violets, growing on outcrops of the local Kambe Limestone Belt.
Nature Kenya said “The ESIA indicates scientific unfamiliarity as it contains carelessly worded generic statements such as ‘species will be relocated to Arabuko Sokoke forest’, ‘the site is devoid of any eco-sensitive area’ and ‘impact on biodiversity and wildlife is minimal’.”
Saffron Growers Association accuses Kashmiri cement plants of causing dust pollution
09 January 2024India: The Saffron Growers Association (SGA) has said that cement plants in Kashmir are causing dust pollution, to which the association attributed the decline of the local saffron industry. Down to Earth News has reported that the SGA alleges that the state’s traditional crop has ceased to be profitable because of extra costs arising from the fall of dust during flowering season. The association added that pollutants such as nitrous oxides (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) can also affect saffron’s growth.
The SGA called on authorities to regulate the construction of cement plants and their emissions more closely.
Spain: Residents of Cartagena, Murcia, have protested Cemex’s plans to begin mining pozzolan at new sites locally. The Murcia Plaza newspaper has reported that the protestors are calling for a mining ban, in line with their interpretation of the area’s Rural Area of Special Environmental and Social Sensitivity designation.