LafargeHolcim Austria is using a disused part of its quarry in Retznei, Austria as a recycling center.
The Geocycle Recycling Center processes Construction and Demolition waste, which accounts for approximately 25% - 30% of all waste generated in Europe, in the quarry that serves LafargeHolcim’s cement plant in Retznei.
A local partner provides expertise in waste to handle 100,000 tons of CDW annually at the site. “The LafargeHolcim cement plant in Retznei is already amongst the top performers worldwide in substituting thermal energy with alternative fuel. With the creation of the Geocycle Recycling Center Retznei (GRCR), our teams are also setting a benchmark in recycling construction and demolition waste. Today, 12% of the raw materials (limestone, silica, alumina…) used in to produce cement in Retznei come from recycled waste,” the company says.
“One notable achievement is the GRCR’s ability to co-process clay bricks. This non-frost resistant material is not normally recyclable when temperatures drop below zero in Austria. But our teams have developed a successful approach to reuse clay bricks as an alternative raw material in the cement production process.”
By 2020, the European Union has mandated that countries must be capable of recycling at least 70% of its CDW. The Geocyle Recycling Center Retznei is already capable of meeting that goal.
When a construction and demolition waste stream arrives at the center, 35% is co-processed and injected back into the cement production process at the LafargeHolcim plant. Another 35% is treated and sold as alternative materials to private customers and construction companies to use in drainage systems.
“By implementing GRCR solutions, Geocycle demonstrates that it can contribute to achieving the ambitious target set by the European Union on CDW recycling,” Christian Lampl, Geocycle Austria said.
“We will continue our efforts in giving a second life to discarded demolition materials, helping to reach one of our group’s 2030 Sustainability Plan targets: using 80 million tons per year of resources made from waste in our operations”, said Antoine Duclaux, LafargeHolcim cluster chief executive, Central Europe East. “It also helps to decrease the amount of CDW going to landfill,” Duclaux said.
