24/02/2006 - The Environment
Agency has served an enforcement notice
on cement manufacturer Lafarge for breaches
of its permit at Westbury cement works in
Wiltshire. The notice was served yesterday
(February 22, 2006).
The move follows exceedances of the limits
for emissions of hydrogen chloride and oxides
of nitrogen from the 2 kilns, which burn
waste tyres for fuel. Lafarge has to regularly
submit monitoring results to the Environment
Agency as part of its permit conditions
and the exceedances were identified as part
of this process.
‘We have served Lafarge with a very stringent
enforcement notice with specific actions
and timescales for them to ensure the works
meet the conditions of the permit,’ explained
Jim Flory for the Environment Agency.
New stricter limits were brought in at
the works last December to enable Lafarge
to operate as a co-incineration plant under
the Waste Incineration Directive (WID).
The emissions of hydrogen chloride and oxides
of nitrogen have not increased, but WID
has imposed stricter limits on the works.
‘The limits are set well below the environmental
thresholds and safety limits so the breaches
have not caused any harm and will not affect
the environment or people’s health. However
we are very concerned that the works are
not meeting their new conditions and this
is why we have issued this enforcement notice’,
said Mr Flory.
The Agency’s enforcement notice gives Lafarge
six weeks from February 22, 2006 to carry
out a comprehensive and detailed review
to pinpoint the actions that the company
must take to comply with its new permit
limits.
These actions will then be implemented
to a timetable agreed with the Environment
Agency.
