Displaying items by tag: Tyres

US: The debate over proposed clean air regulations which may restrict or halt LafargeHolcim’s tyre-burning plans at its 2.0Mt/yr Ravena plant will take place on 23 December 2019. The Times Union newspaper has reported that councillors will debate whether to lower the maximum permitted pollutant emissions from incineration facilities to a level below that entailed by LafargeHolcim’s alternative fuel (AF) plans.

In mid-2018, LafargeHolcim’s licence from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for the combustion of 4.8M tyres per year expired. It announced ‘preliminary discussions’ with tyre suppliers in January 2019.

Kenya: 58% LafargeHolcim subsidiary Bamburi Cement has set out an ambitious alternative fuel plan. In a statement, it said that it would aim to use 30% biomass-derived fuel in cement kilns at its 1.1Mt/yr integrated Mombasa plant. The figure currently stands at 12%. Municipal waste and tyres were among other fuel sources targeted for substitution. In a first step towards achieving this, Bamburi Cement has signed a supply agreement with the Port of Mombasa for confiscated cargoes.

Since 26 September 2019, Bamburi has received waste fuel oil from Shell petrol stations across Kenya via its subsidiary Geocycle at a rate of 240t/yr. In co-processing the oil, Bamburi is helping dispose of some of the 60,000t of waste petroleum produced in Kenya annually. Afrik21 has reported that, with an expenditure of US$5.8m in 2018, alternative fuel substitution is an attempt by the company to reduce untenable operating costs, notably including electricity costs of US$87/MWh. “Bamburi is looking at more partnerships for the disposal of various types of waste as we work to contribute to environmental conservation as part of our sustainability ambitions,” said Bamburi Cement managing director Seddiq Hassani.

Canada: Reports from Lafarge Canada’s Brookfield cement plant in Nova Scotia have indicated the effectiveness of burning tyres as fuel there. CBC has reported that, as part of a 12-month investigation, scrap tyres were burned ‘off and on’ for a month at the 0.6Mt/yr integrated cement plant. Following further staff training, tyres will replace coal in the kilns on a full-time basis. Environment and Public Affairs Director Robert Cummings has said that there has been no notable change in emissions. Lafarge Canada will release the results of an emissions check including testing for low-concentration materials not covered by emissions monitoring in early January 2020.

Jamaica: Caribbean Cement plans to invest in co-processing tyres as part of a US$9m spend on capital projects in 2019. More details on the project will be disclosed later in July 2019 when a memorandum of understanding is signed with the government, according to the Gleaner newspaper. The subsidiary of Mexico’s Cemex has already spent US$0.5m on handling tyres.

Mexico: Residents from El Refugio, Atotonilco de Tula have complained about the unauthorised burning of yires at Cementos Fortaleza’s El Palmar plant. The Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources stopped tires being burned at the plant in February 2019 due to a lack of an impact study and an environmental licence, according to the El Universal newspaper. Residents allege that the plant has been burning tyres at night since the ban. They are concerned about health issues resulting from burning tyres.

Colombia: Cementos Argos co-processed more than 75,000t of solid waste in 2018. It burns alternative fuels at its Rioclara and Cartagena cement plants. Its plants also co-process up to 65,000t/yr of tyres.

Argentina: Geocycle has signed a three-year deal with the Province of Mendoza to use tyres at LafargeHolcim’s Capdeville cement plant. Geocycle has spent Euro1.15m on preparing a unit to process the tyres, according to the Los Andes newspaper. The waste management subsidiary of LafargeHolcim has also worked with the local government on setting up collection points for residents to leave old tyres. Geocycle conducted a similar project in Jujuy province in 2018 and it plans to run a similar one in Cordoba province.

US: LafargeHolcim’s Ravena cement plant in New York is considering burning tyres as an alternative fuel. Environmental Director Kevin G Bretz told Coeymans town officials that the cement producer has ‘developed relationships’ and held ‘preliminary discussions’ with potential tyre suppliers, according to the Times Union newspaper. The cement producer was hoping to use an approval by the state Department of Environmental Conservation granted in 2006 that gave permission for it to burn up to 4.8 million tyres annually at the plant. However, this Beneficial Use Determination (BUD) expired in mid-2018.

Argentina: Geocycle Argentina has signed a framework agreement with the Ministry of Environment to co-process tyres at Holcim Argentina’s Capdeville cement plant in Las Heras. The arrangement is also intended to minimise population’s levels of the Aedes aegypti or yellow fever mosquito, according to MDZ Online. Improper disposal of tyres and the subsequent accumulation of water can lead to higher breeding levels of the mosquito. The insect is a vector in the transmission of the Zika, Dengue and Chikungunya viruses.

Canada: The Environment Department has approved plans by the Lafarge Brookfield cement plant to burn tyres in a kiln in a one-year pilot project. The company will be obliged to conduct monitor air quality, groundwater and surface water in the area during the trial, according to the Canadian Press newspaper. Industrial approvals are normally issued for 10 years but the shorter period will allow the authorities to scrutinise the situation more closely. Lafarge Canada plans to burn up to 5200t/yr in the pilot.

The decision to allow the pilot to go ahead follows local criticism of the project. A previous attempt by the cement producer to co-process tyres at the plant was blocked in 2007. The provincial Supreme Court dismissed a residents' group's bid for a judicial review of the pilot in March 2018.