Environmental investments
Neither the restrictions on the activity, inherent to the confinements, nor the drop in sales as a result of the Covid-19 health emergency, prevented the Catalan cement sector from continuing with the investment policy to improve its environmental behavior. An already excellent performance, as reflected by compliance - in many parameters, with a load of slack - with the emission limits to which factories are subject by environmental legislation.
During 2020, these investments exceeded 3.5 million euros, adding upto more than 205 M€ in the last 3 decades. Almost a third of them were dedicated to improving visual impact, an aspect highly valued by citizens.
CO2 saving, through energy recovery from waste in cement production, added another 25% of the investment with almost 800 thousand euros. The chapters on energy efficiency and prevention and reduction of differentemissions were also the preferred destination for the economic efforts of the factories. Finally, it is worth noting the protection of biodiversity, which more than quadrupled the investment from the previous year.
| HEADING | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | Var. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.Particulate matter emission reduction at localized sources (chimney emissions) | 769.266 | 3.005.208 | 355.493 | -88% |
| 2. Prevention and reduction of atmospheric particulate emissions from material storage, handling and transportation operations | 198.965 | 173.419 | 143.142 | -17% |
| 3. Nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur (SO2) emission reduction | 0 | 0 | 291.478 | 100% |
| 4. Sound emission reduction | 158.000 | 137.542 | 176.000 |
28% |
| 5. Quality of water discharges | 75.413 | 284.064 | 0 | -100% |
| 6. Cement factory waste reduction, recycling and management | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7. CO2 saving through recycling and recovery of waste in the manufacture of cement through the use of alternative raw materials (material recovery) | 0 | 0 | 109.350 | 100% |
| 8. CO2 saving through recycling and recovery of waste in the manufacture of cement through the use of alternative raw materials (energy recovery) | 1.250.179 | 599.239 | 789.325 | 32% |
| 9. Odour emission reduction | 0 | 200.000 | 66.725 | -67% |
| 10. Visual impact | 423.539 | 1.498.281 | 1.025.008 | -32% |
| 11. Environmental effect control | 231.177 | 161.953 | 140.473 | -13% |
| 12. Energy efficiency | 541.511 | 17.599 | 348.289 | 1.879% |
| 13. Biodiversity | 8.834 | 17.500 | 95.943 | 448% |
| TOTAL | 3.656.884 | 6.094.807 | 3.541.227 | -42% |
Nota: quantities in €
