To the Editor

Those who are curious watched the webinar that Lehigh (or Heidelberg) Cement presented on Thursday to find out how they are going to “green” cement making.

Well, they are going to Greenwash it!

By attending the public meeting, we helped them qualify with government regulations. By taking non-recyclable waste from the landfill stream the company can claim that they are participating in a carbon capture and storage activity (CCUS) while they admitted that will save on their expenses.

Of course we would all like to know why this waste is non-recyclable? The reason is different with each substance but mainly it is carrying chemicals that are harmful to living things.

Even ‘treated seeds’ are coated with pesticides. Lehigh is proposing to burn up to 200 tons of fuel manufactured from landfill waste on a daily basis (the maximum permitted by the regulation). In doing so, they are effectively converting 200 tons of solid materials into gases (including sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide) that will be released into the very air we breathe.

This waste will replace some of the coke they are using now for heat but certainly not all. And it seems that the amount of natural gas burned will stay the same. In other words Lehigh is saying that they intend to continue producing a product that requires non sustainable methods of manufacture.

It is joining the gas and oil industries in the ‘there is no alternative’ crowd.

Give up hope for our grandchildren.

Myrna Wood

Picton