Displaying items by tag: Virginia

US: Charah Solutions has been awarded a marketing contract by Dominion Energy for the beneficiation and utilisation of up to 8.1Mt reclaimed ponded coal ash at its Chesterfield Power Station in Chester, Virginia. The contract will run from 2021 until 2032. It follows local state legislation requiring the power company to remove coal ash from sites at the Chesterfield Power Station within 15 years.

As part of the agreement, Charah Solutions will install processing and transportation infrastructure in 2021 to facilitate rail transportation of the ash from Chesterfield Power Station to cement kiln feed markets. The beneficiated ash product will replace other currently utilised virgin raw materials in the production of Portland cement at multiple cement kiln locations in the eastern US for the next decade and beyond, and help supply the growing demand for concrete in the construction industry.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has announced the winners of its Chairman’s Safety Performance Award for outstanding safety performance in Portland cement production in the US.

The winners were: Cemex USA’s Clinchfield, Georgia and Victorville, California plants; Lehigh Hanson’s Cupertino, California and Tehachapi, California plants; Titan America’s Medley, Florida and Troutville, Virginia plants; LafargeHolcim’s Morgan, Utah and Theodore, Alabama plants; Buzzi Unicem’s Chattanooga, Tennessee plant; GCC of America’s Pueblo, Colorado plant; and Argos USA’s Atlanta, Georgia grinding plant.

PCA chair Tom Beck said, “We’re proud to highlight these top safety performers. Our industry is constantly focused on doing everything possible to assure our employees go home in the same condition as they arrived.”

US: Green Business Certification (GBC) has recognised Titan America subsidiary Roanoake Cement’s successful implementation of its zero waste policy at the 1.5Mt/yr Troutville, Virginia plant with a Total Resource Use and Efficiency (TRUE) Gold award. In 2019 the plant won the GBC’s TRUE Silver award. Roanoake Cement environmental engineer Lindsey Layman said, “In order to elevate our TRUE Zero Waste certification, we ramped up our zero waste policy to include, for example, physical audits of waste and improving recycling practices on-site. As a result, we have created a zero-waste culture and achieved an average of 98% overall diversion from landfill and incineration of solid non-hazardous wastes.”

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has announced the winners of the 2019 Energy and Environment (E&E) Awards. The awards recognised environmental and community relations projects that were completed in 2018 and were presented at the 3rd Annual Cement and Concrete Fly-In.

The CalPortland Mojave cement plant in California won the Energy Efficiency award for the installation of a new classifier system for its vertical roller mill that increased energy efficiency by reducing fan power requirements. The plant also installed a control system for the finish mill that will maximise performance and help reduce wear on equipment. The classifier installation reduced the finish mill energy intensity by 1.5 to 2.0kWh/t, and the control system reduced energy intensity by 13%. In 2018 22% of the electricity consumed by the plant came from on-site renewable wind energy generation. CalPortland has implemented significant energy efficiency measures and its energy management program has been recognised by the Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star program as the Energy Star Partner of the Year for 15 years in a row.

Roanoke Cement Company and Titan America’s Troutville plant in Virginia won the Environmental Performance award for being the first cement manufacturing plant in the US to receive ISO 50001 certification for energy management of all aspects of energy procurement, design and use. The plant reduced its total electrical consumption by 10% and fossil fuels use by more than 12%. The plant has also implemented an alternative fuels program as part of its certification for the True Zero Waste Program, administered by Green Business Certification and has received silver status achieving a 96% rate of waste divergence from landfills.

Lehigh Hanson’s Permanente cement plant at Cupertino in California won the Innovation award for the installation of a water treatment system reducing concentrations of metals, including selenium, to meet permit limits. Lehigh Hanson developed a treatment system that combined ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis (UF/RO) technology in conjunction with biological treatment technology to remove metals, including selenium and dissolved solids. This ensured applicable effluent limits were met while optimising treatment capacity and efficiency. This treatment system is the first of its kind in the cement industry ensuring that effluent limits are met while, at the same time, limiting the quantity of waste needed to be managed.

Buzzi Unicem USA’s Greencastle cement plant in Indiana won the Land Stewardship award for opening a 4km smooth packed stone trail in conjunction with the not-for-profit People Pathways organisation as Phase 2 of the Putnam Nature Trail. Buzzi Unicem USA staff and People Pathways used heavy equipment for rough clearing and grading of the overgrown former railroad bed and improved and expanded the physical trail. These areas were then landscaped with trees, native prairie vegetation plugs, interpretive signage, benches, birdhouses and other features. Additional nature trail enhancements include placement of wildlife monitoring cameras along the trail, installation of nesting boxes and interpretive signage, and maintenance of the recently completed restoration of native flora installed in 2017 and 2018.

Cemex’s Lyons cement plant in Colorado won the Outreach award for volunteering work by its staff at the Rocky Mountain National Park in Boulder, Colorado, performing campground improvement activities at Glacier Basin Campground by moving rocks and fallen timber and clearing existing fire pits of ash deposits. The plant then introduced a new community outreach initiative by hosting a Manufacturing Day event, providing local students tours of the quarry and plant to increase youth interest in pursuing a vocation in skilled trades. Additionally, the plant teamed up with the Celestial Seasonings B Strong Ride for cancer care and research for an event aimed at increasing safety awareness while fundraising for two local organizations and their efforts to fight cancer.

US: The Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) has recertified four of Roanoke Cement Company’s terminals in Virginia and North Carolina. Units at Front Royal, Richmond and Bristol in Virginia and Winston-Salem, North Carolina received the certification.

"Having the Wildlife Habitat Council's recertification for each of them is a distinguished recognition confirming that all of Roanoke Cement's sites are on the right track ecologically. We look forward to continuing our conservation efforts providing pleasing, ‘green’ features within our terminal campuses. A few examples include pollinator meadows at Front Royal and Winston-Salem, avian habitats for the Eastern Bluebird in Richmond, and stream restoration in Bristol," said David Brinkley, Director of Distribution & Customer Resources at Roanoke Cement Company.

WHC's certification program, ‘Conservation Certification,’ is built on global recognition programs, reflects contemporary conservation efforts and applies its collective learning to the future of biodiversity in the US and the globe. Front Royal, Richmond and Winston-Salem were originally certified in 2013. Bristol was originally certified in 2015. Certification by WHC is valid for two years.

US: Roanoke Cement, a subsidiary of Titan America, has achieved its 11th consecutive annual certification in the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Energy Star certification for its Troutville plant in Virginia. To qualify for the certification the cement producer was required to perform in the top 25% of cement plants nationwide for total energy efficiency (thermal and electrical) and meet strict environmental performance levels set by the EPA.

“Roanoke Cement Company’s plant sits in the Roanoke Valley, in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The stakes are higher for us, surrounded by all that beauty, to perform at the pinnacle of the cement industry in energy efficiency,” said Chris Bayne, Roanoke Cement’s Energy Manager.