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Continental Cement Company, and our sister company Green America Recycling, share a commitment to produce cement in a sustainable way. This commitment, along with industry guidance and environmental stewardship in manufacturing and distribution, help us make cement and its end product, concrete, an environmentally responsible building material. Located near historic Hannibal, Missouri, for over 100 years, we remain focused on supporting our local community, preserving our habitat and doing our part to help protect the planet.
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Continental Cement is one of only 14 cement manufacturers permitted to handle federally-regulated hazardous waste materials as a fuel source, and one of only two cement manufacturers permitted to handle federally-regulated solid hazardous waste materials. These materials include a wide range of recycled industrial by-products and waste materials. All material that we recycle undergoes an extensive prequalification process as dictated by federal and state regulations. Waste materials account for nearly 50 % of our annual fuel requirements, compared to the industry average of 10 %. Listed below are examples of the waste materials recycled by Continental Cement on an annual basis and some of the impact they have on the environment:
- Liquid hazardous waste – 78,000,000 pounds of material such as chlorinated and non-chlorinated solvents, flammable paints, refinery liquids and oils are burned for energy recovery
- Solid hazardous waste – 40,000,000 pounds of material such as solvent contaminated rags, debris, spill clean up media and refinery wastes are burned for energy recovery
- Metals – 1,000,000 pounds of metal are properly recycled and prevented from going to landfills
- Pallets – 3,000 delivery pallets are recycled for reuse
- Used motor oil and used paint / paint-related materials are collected periodically as part of a local community recycling program
- On average, over 110,000,000 pounds of hazardous materials are burned for energy recovery and thus excluded from landfills or non-productive incineration. This equates to over 100,000,000 pounds of coal resources that are preserved.
For more information on the environmental recycling efforts of our sister company, please visit the Green America Recycling website.
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In addition to the waste materials recycled for fuel, Continental Cement also recycles a number of industrial waste by-products and utilizes them in the cement manufacturing process. These recovered by-products, coupled with the locally available raw materials, help us manufacture cement in a sustainable way. Listed below are the recovered waste materials that we use to make cement and preserve natural resources:
- Synthetic Gypsum – Calcium sulfate scrubber stone from a local power plant, recycled to replace and preserve natural gypsum (7 % of finished cement or 168,000,000 pounds annually)
- Iron – Recycled material from local steel mills to replace and preserve natural iron ore reserves (1.5 % of finished cement or 36,000,000 pounds annually)
- Bottom Ash – Coal ash reclaimed from local industrial power plants
- Aluminum Oxide – Polishing agents and catalyst materials reclaimed from local equipment manufacturers
- Sodium Bicarbonate – Polishing agent reclaimed from a local equipment manufacturer
- Cement Kiln Dust – Dust captured from the cement manufacturing process that is reintroduced into the process in order to minimize waste and reduce energy consumption
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Continental Cement pursues every practical opportunity to reclaim its on-site quarries with native grasses and trees, and return them to natural habitat as soon as possible. We have reclaimed over 200 acres of quarry land to natural habitat with traditional methods, and in conjunction with the University of Missouri, we reclaimed over 15 acres with a unique artificial soil program. The artificial soil consists of local yard waste, wastewater treatment sludge and cement kiln dust that is mixed and composted to create a growth medium for vegetation. And, as an added benefit to employees, an old shale quarry was converted into a 30-acre lake with a picnic site and recreational fishing.
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Continental Cement, and the cement industry as a whole, continues to explore new ways of producing cement in an environmentally responsible way. Developing and implementing new technologies, we continue to provide the most efficient processes to reduce our impact on the environment. Since 1975, the U.S. cement industry has reduced its carbon dioxide emissions by 33 % and reduced its energy consumption by as much as 37 %. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, cement production accounts for only 0.33 % of total energy consumption, compared to 6.5 % for petroleum refining, 1.8 % for steel production and 0.5 % for wood processing.
For more information on sustainable efforts of the cement industry, please follow the link below to the Portland Cement Association’s website.
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Sustainable / LEED Oriented ProductsConcrete, with cement as its primary ingredient, remains the most widely-used, man-made, construction material on earth. Concrete is 100 % recyclable, and will not rust, rot or burn. Plus its unique ability to be formed into any shape makes it a natural choice for residential, commercial and public construction. Concrete can be colored, stamped and textured making it a durable, safe and sustainable material for any application. Continental Cement’s distribution terminals along the Mississippi River in St. Louis, MO; Hannibal, MO; and Bettendorf, IA, provide efficient river transportation to our concrete producing customers, thereby eliminating about 13,000 semi-trucks from our highways each year. Using our cement helps engineers and architects pursuing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification to benefit from locally distributed cement that contains a significant amount of recycled materials.
For more information on the sustainable benefits of concrete please visit the following individual websites.
Portland Cement Association
www.ConcreteThinker.comNational Ready Mixed Concrete Association
www.greenconcrete.infoAmerican Concrete Pavement Association
www.pavements4life.com/Environmental_Topics.aspU.S. Green Building Council
www.usgbc.org