Heidelberg makes environmental advancements at Canadian cement plant

Heidelberg Materials North America has announced environmental advancements at its cement plant in Alberta, Canada. 

The cement plant has made a major investment in equipment and infrastructure, reports the Journal of Commerce, enabling the replacement of up to 50 percent of fossil fuels used in cement production with low-carbon alternative fuels (ALCF). 

These alternatives are sourced from municipal and construction and demolition waste materials, which would otherwise be disposed of in landfills. 

Their use brings several benefits, the company states, including:

• reduced greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from combustion, as biomass in ALCF replaces carbon from fossil fuels; 
• lowered GHG emissions from avoided landfill gas emissions; 
• enhanced land use by extending the lifespan of existing landfills; and
• the elimination of persistent environmental wastes, such as plastics, from the ecosystem.

The advancements were aided by support from the Province of Alberta through the Industrial Energy Efficiency and Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Program and a $2.4 million investment from the Government of Alberta’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction fund through Emissions Reduction Alberta.

Local waste managers in the Edmonton region, including the city of Edmonton’s Refuse Derived Fuel plant, process only nonhazardous wastes into high-quality alternative fuels. These fuels are used as a consistent feedstock for the Heidelberg Materials kiln system. 

“At Heidelberg Materials, we are not just producing cement, we are crafting a sustainable future,” says Joerg Nixdorf, vice president of cement operations for the northwest region of Heidelberg Materials North America. “The advancements at our Edmonton Cement Plant reflect our leadership in environmental responsibility and our commitment to lowering our carbon footprint through innovative and efficient utilization of low-carbon fuel sources.”

The project is expected to divert approximately 100 kilotons per year of nonhazardous waste from landfills.