CEMEX launch their first-ever Circularity Centre

Columbian capital Bogotá chosen as location for pioneering benchmark model of circularity

CEMEX have launched their first Circularity Centre globally. The site is located south of Bogotá, Columbia, in an old quarry that has recently been restored and will become a model for other CEMEX operations.

The 300ha property, located in the Tunjuelo sector, was used for more than 70 years as a source of building materials for the growth of Bogotá. Having excavations that are more than 50m deep, in recent years the land has been used as the primary recipient of demolition waste from the capital, allowing its ecological rehabilitation and the subsequent planting of a vegetal layer.

CEMEX have reformed the land and are working on its ecological restoration to create an exemplary site closure that will contribute to the city. The project is aligned with local initiatives to encourage circular waste management and promote a sustainable habitat in Bogotá.

The Circularity Centre comprises six components focused on reducing CO2 emissions as part of CEMEX’s Future in Action programme:

1. Closure of quarry activities in the location.
2. Recycling used cement bags to avoid their final disposal in landfills; the cellulose extracted from the bags is used for construction materials.
3. Solid waste collection to replace fossil fuel to produce the company’s building materials portfolio.
4. Collecting and crushing demolition waste for reuse in recycled aggregates.
5. Reception and activation of excavation waste.
6. Planning future urban projects in one of the most densely populated areas of the city in co-ordination with the Bogotá Mayor’s Office.

‘This is a pioneering model for CEMEX in the construction materials industry globally, which we aim to position as a benchmark for circularity within the sustainable development of large cities in Colombia and the world,’ said Alejandro Ramírez, president of CEMEX in Colombia and Peru.

‘A piece of land that supplied materials for Bogotá’s development for decades has received construction and demolition waste for its redevelopment and was transformed into a green area to the south of the city, an epicenter of the circular economy, and an opportunity for urban development for the capital city of Colombia.’

The launch ceremony took place on 12 December and was hosted by Nadya Rangel, Minister of Habitat in Bogotá; Carolina Urrutia, Minister of Environment in Bogotá; and Alejandro Ramírez, president of CEMEX in Colombia and Peru.