• LafargeHolcim »
  • Sustainable construction »
  • Environmental footprint

    • Environmental footprint

    Although the building materials industry is not a large consumer of water compared to other industries, water is an essential resource in our operations. Freshwater withdrawal per ton of cementitious material decreased by 5.7% as we continued to focus efforts in all our cement plants worldwide.

     

    Beside reducing our water footprint, we engage with stakeholders on sharing water and providing more water to communities.

     

    The vast majority of LafargeHolcim plants operate within best practice emission ranges and some are among the best in the sector.

     

    In 2019, 86% of our cement plants had an Environmental Management System (EMS) equivalent to ISO 14001 in place.

     

    How we aim to minimize our environmental footprint

    Water management

    Today we are shifting our focus to consider our total impact on water resources in the communities where we operate, particularly in water-scarce areas. We optimize and prevent the use of fresh water as well as reduce the risk of depletion or pollution by measuring our operational water footprint, reducing freshwater withdrawal, assessing water risks, engaging with stakeholders on sharing water and providing more water to communities.

    Air emissions 

    We expect that all our cement sites measure and manage air emissions. In 2019, we monitored dust, NOx and SO2 emissions from 94% of the clinker we produced; 86% of clinker production is monitored continuously. The vast majority of LafargeHolcim plants operate within best practice emission ranges and some are among the best in the sector.In 2019 Group dust emissions reduced by around 5% year on year.

    Environmental management systems

    To ensure compliance with stringent company requirements we expect all our cement plants to have an environmental management system in place. In 2019, 86% of our cement plants had an environmental management system equivalent to ISO 14001 in place.