Voluntary EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme

Cooperation between Westphalia and Brandenburg: for the first time ever, a consolidated Environmental Statement by CEMEX‘s Beckum and Rüdersdorf cement plants has served as a basis for the voluntary EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). The plants received the EMAS certificate on 15.04.2010. For the next three years, the two cement plants can now use the exclusive EMAS logo in connection with their operational environmental protection meas-ures. IHK Managing Director Gundolf Schülke (IHK, the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce) presented the EMAS certificate to CEMEX Managers Hans-Dieter Grudno and Henning Weber in the presence of
Dr. Frank Beck, Head of ­Section at the Ministry of
the Environment (Fig. 1, from left to right).

Martin Langvad, Vice President Cement Operations at CEMEX Deutschland AG,
greeted the guests from politics and industry, including Dr. Frank Beck, Head of Section at the Ministry of the Environment, Health and Consumer Protection of the Federal State of Brandenburg, and held a presentation of the company. The cement plants in Beckum in North Rhine-Westphalia are run by CEMEX WestZement GmbH, while the plant in Rüdersdorf near Berlin belongs to CEMEX OstZement GmbH. Both are subsidiaries of CEMEX Deutschland AG, one of the leading manufacturers of building materials in Germany.

Martin Langvad: “We seek an open dialogue with the public and therefore provide comprehensive information about our cement plants and our environmental protection measures. We wish to show that we comply with high environmental stand-ards in our day-to-day work. To this end, we are also willing to disclose operational data in an environmental statement. Certification in accordance with EMAS provides us with valuable leverage in discussions with authorities, environmental groups and local residents.”

The “Eco-Management and Audit Scheme” (EMAS) developed by the EU is an environmental management and environmental auditing system according to which companies commit on a voluntary basis to the evaluation and continuous improvement of their environmental performance. The Rüdersdorf site has been certified in accordance with EMAS since the year 2000, making it the first cement plant in Germany to receive the certification. The Beckum site has been certified since 2007. In the wake of the regular recertification process for 2010, the Consolidated Environmental Statement of the two cement plants was reviewed by the independent and state-monitored appraiser TÜV Nord. A report concerning direct and indirect environmental impacts, environmental performance levels and environmental goals has to be compiled as a prerequisite for EMAS certification, which is based on an environmental management system in accordance with industry standard ISO 14001 (Fig. 2).

Hans-Dieter Grudno, Manager of ­CEMEX OstZement GmbH: “A new aspect in this year’s recertification process was that we have since established a comprehensive environmental management system for all German cement plants in our Group, on the basis of which our Beckum plant was also included in the consolidated certification. Consequently, we are able to publish a Consolidated Environmental Statement for the first time in 2010.”

Henning Weber, Manager of ­CEMEX WestZement GmbH, emphasised that CEMEX pursues a binding, enterprise-wide environmental policy and designs its production processes to be as environmentally compatible as possible: “Sustainability and environmental responsibility are not mere slogans – they are key principles of our day-to-day operations. We are pleased that this has once again been confirmed by external experts for our Beckum and Rüdersdorf cement sites. Our efforts focus on the diligent use of natural resources, the minimisation of emissions and the increased use of secondary materials.”

At the end of the ceremony, the host Hans-Dieter Grudno presented the control station of the cement plant and the process laboratory during a guided tour of the site. The guests were shown kiln line 5 and then taken to the 107 m high heat exchanger stack, from where they had a panoramic view of the entire plant site, the limestone surface mining areas and the surrounding region. The Consolidated Environmental Statement 2010 can be found at: