CEMEX’s Cement Plants Recognized As Tops in the Nation for Environment & Energy Advances

At a ceremony on March 19, 2007, the Portland Cement Association (PCA) and Cement America’s Magazine recognized CEMEX’s cement operations in Davenport, Calif. with the Land Stewardship Award and the CEMEX Knoxville, Tenn. location for the Innovation Award at the annual Environment and Energy Awards, some of the most prestigious awards in the industry.

Land Stewardship Award

The Davenport plant won in the Land Stewardship category for demonstrating superior land conservation and environmental stewardship practices on its 10,000 acres located in Santa Cruz County, California. The plant successfully continues exemplary land restoration projects, such as the reclamation in the Davenport shale and limestone quarries. Each year, the people of the Davenport plant perform habitat restoration and re-vegetation with native trees, perform exotic weed control and exotic tree removal in order to enhance growth of native habits and species, and retain a professional landscape architect to manage the program. They also have created a large forested buffer area around the quarry operation for screening and buffering the neighboring rural community.

“We are honored to receive this award. This is much more than a title to CEMEX and our Davenport facility. It is a pronounced way of running our operations,” said Gilberto Perez, President of CEMEX USA. “For 100 years, the Davenport plant has been a guardian of the Santa Cruz north coast and 9,000 acres of forestland in the state of California. Through these practices and new ones, we intend to keep this commitment to the community and the environment,” he said.

The plant’s promotion of biodiversity and wildlife conservation was noted among the best in the nation. The CEMEX property provides special habitat for a variety of wildlife, mammals and bird species, and is home to several endangered and threatened species. CEMEX has set aside ponds and wetlands for breeding and protection areas for the California Red-legged frog. In addition, in 2006, a portion of the proposed mining operation was determined to be a habitat for the San Francisco Dusky-Footed Woodrat, a California species of concern. CEMEX land provides a habitat area for this woodrat and also uses the area for other wildlife habitat conservation. In 2006, the Davenport plant initiated a program that seeks certification in the Wildlife Habitat Council’s Wildlife at Work program to enhance wildlife habitat on CEMEX property and to raise environmental awareness with employees and the community.

CEMEX’s property serves as a vital watershed for Davenport and New Town, providing for their raw water needs from San Vincente and Mill Creeks. Every year, CEMEX Davenport contributes $160,000 to fund half the cost for Santa Cruz County to treat the community’s water and sewage, and provides up to $25,000 to fund capital projects related to the system.

Recent site beautification efforts have included enhancing the entranceway and grounds with additional flowers, shrubs and trees. Eight large storage silos were demolished to improve the aesthetics.

The Davenport cement plant was also named a finalist for the PCA’s Community Outreach category for demonstrating extraordinary efforts in community stewardship activities undertaken in the past year, and as a finalist for the Overall Environmental Award for exemplifying the plant’s commitment to the environment and energy efficiency conservation.

Innovation Award

The CEMEX Knoxville, Tenn. cement operations won in the Innovation category for successfully implementing programs to find ways to reduce NOx emissions. A few years ago, the CEMEX Process Technology team, led by Robin Forster, began using an old technology in a new way–injecting water into the cement kiln’s burner pipes to reduce NOx. Although the application was a proven method in the power industry for years, it had never been widely used in cement kilns. The team embarked on a series of massive tests and discovered that this technology not only worked in cement kilns, but it also worked exceptionally well and could reduce NOx by 15 percent. This discovery is a major reason the CEMEX Knoxville operations were selected for the Innovation Award.

The team has also identified new effective methods for reducing NOx further by using recycled water from refined oil available at oil collection centers. The discarded oil normally comes from automotive shops and other businesses, but the CEMEX team has found a way to extract the water and use it successfully in the water injection technology, not only conserving water, but also helping to reduce waste products. The material was typically disposed of at a public treatment facility, but now has a new use and helps reduce the CEMEX plant’s emissions.

“These programs have resulted in environmental benefits for the plant and the community. The CEMEX team came up with innovative solutions that help conserve, recycle, reduce, and also set a great example for the industry to follow,” said Perez.

CEMEX is a growing global building solutions company that provides high quality products and reliable service to customers and communities in more than 50 countries throughout the world. CEMEX has a rich history of improving the well-being of those it serves through its efforts to pursue innovative industry solutions and efficiency advancements and to promote a sustainable future. For more information, visit www.cemexusa.com.