New Zealand contractor Fletcher Building has announced the completion of its project to divert used tyres from landfill to cement manufacture.
Fletcher plans to send up to 3 million tyres a year to the Golden Bay Cement factory in northern city of Portland, which will burn them and at around 1,400°C and add the results to its product.
According to the company, this will reduce carbon emissions by around 13,000 tonnes a year and cut the use of iron sand by 5,000 tonnes.
US$11m of the $17m project was funded by New Zealand’s Ministry for the Environment through the Waste Minimisation Fund.
Ross Taylor, Fletcher Building’s chief executive, said: "Our cement already has around 20% lower emissions than imported cement and using tyres is part of the decarbonisation plan to reduce its footprint even further.
"Climate change is an urgent, global priority. The building and materials sector has an important role to play by changing the way that it designs, builds, sources and manufactures the building materials used in the construction process. We are serious about transforming our business around sustainability to do our part in creating a sustainable future and reducing our carbon emissions."
Image courtesy of Liia Galimzianova/Dreamstime
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