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Ethiopian Journal of Environmental Studies & Management 7(5): 508 – 519, 2014 ISSN:1998-0507 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ejesm.v7i5.5 Submitted: May 17, 2014 Accepted: August 06, 2014 OVERCOMING ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES IN THE CEMENT MANUFACTURING SECTOR THROUGHCLEANER PRODUCTION. A CASE OF SINO COMPANY, ZIMBABWE KUSENA, W., MARAMBANYIKA, T. AND MASWOSWERE, P. Midlands State University, P Bag 9055, Gweru, Zimbabwe Abstract The paper investigated the extent to which Sino Zimbabwe Cement Company (SZCC) implemented Cleaner Production (CP) options to deal with high emissions and waste emanating from its operations. Research data was collected through questionnaires, interviews, direct observations and document analysis. Two sets of questionnaires were prepared targeting workers and the local community who were direct recipients of pollutants. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key informants such as the Production Manager, the Human Resource Manager, the Finance Manager, Engineering Manager, the Health and Safety Officer and the District Environmental Management Agency Officer. Research findings revealed a reduction in dust emissions, volume of discharged effluent, residuals of oil contaminants and energy consumption. However, solid waste generation and its subsequent disposal remains a problem. Whilst adoption of CP can be viewed as a panacea to most environmental challenges faced by the organization, more investment is required towards elimination of some sources and cause of waste and emissions generation. Key Words : Waste, Emissions, Cleaner production, Cement production, Legislation. Introduction performance of industry. Cleaner production The need to promote a vibrant and (CP) is one of the universally implemented sustainable industrial sector has continued to strategies. It is also an integral component of be a major concern as the world positions international conventions and protocols such itself towards a green economy in the post as the Kyoto Protocol and United Nations Rio+20 period. The apprehension is centered Framework Convention to Climate Change on the prospects that a sustainable industrial aimed at stabilization of greenhouse gases. sector will enable present generation to CP options developed by United Nations safeguard the earth’s life support system on Environment Programme (UNEP) have been which the welfare of the current and future widely implemented across the globe. The generations depends (Griggs et al ., 2013). primary goal of CP is pollution prevention by However, various industrial operations have eliminating or reducing waste or emissions been blamed for significant pollution to the generating streams/processes in industrial detriment of the environment in most operations while increasing the countries (Chenje, 2002; Egbon, 2004; organization’s profit margin. Studies carried Johnson, 2005; Marambanyika and Mutekwa, out in Asia showed that CP resulted in a 50- 2009). In response, international, regional 70% reduction in emissions, water discharge and national policies and strategies were and solid waste generation over a short developed to improve the environmental payback period ranging from less than a year *Corresponding Author: Kusena, W. Email: [email protected] 508 Overcoming Environmental Challenges in the Cement Manufacturing ................ KUSENA et al. to 3 years (El-kholy, 2011). In Eastern despite the pressing need to move from this Europe, CP projects reduced carbon dioxide costly methodology. emissions by 52,500 tonnes and sulphur In Zimbabwe, the need for CP adoption dioxide emissions by 1,916 tonnes from 1998 has been increased by the stringent to 1999 (Johnson, 2005). All these scenarios provisions of the Environmental point towards a reduction in pollution levels, Management Act (Chapter 20:27). Sino hence lessening of the impact of industrial Zimbabwe Cement Company (SZCC) has not operations on environmental integrity. been spared from these legal requirements as Projects and programmes related to CP high pollution levels from their operations have been initiated in Zimbabwe with the resulted in closure of the company by the assistance of international organizations government’s regulatory authority, the through information exchange and capacity Environmental Management Agency in 2009. building (UNEP 2004). In Kenya, the The company was implicated for causing Chandaria Industries Limited in Nairobi water pollution, producing higher than through CP greatly improved the company’s normal dust emissions from its factory, operations as evidenced by cost reduction, discharging raw sewage and used oil directly efficient resources use and improved into Kwekwe River and the surrounding environmental performance at large, thereby environment, posing significant risk to creating a significant contribution towards humans, livestock, flora and fauna (Manyaza, sustainable development by greening its 2009; Kusena et al ., 2012 ). The mounting operations (Johnson, 2005). However, it was environmental challenges coerced the noted that most of the CP programmes were company to implement CP in order to short lived as they were donor-funded and improve its environmental performance. The even some projects in Zimbabwe were not paper examined the extent to which CP spared (Mbowa, 2002; Chidavaenzi, 2011). improved SZCC’s environmental This explains why over a decade, 2000-2011, performance. Zimbabwe only had 42 companies which had Objectives of the Study adopted CP (Chidavaenzi, 2011). Therefore, General Objective some scholars argued that for CP initiatives • To assess the effectiveness of cleaner to be successful, they must be locally production options in minimizing initiated and implemented (Madzinga, 2000; environmental pollution from Sino King, 2003). Zimbabwe Cement Company (SZCC). Successful CP implementation can be Specific Objectives hindered by lack of top management • To establish trends in performance of commitment, lack of effective regulatory selected environmental parameters before pressure, appropriate market incentives and and after implementation of cleaner absence of cleaner production technologies production options. (Mbowa, 2002; Chidavaenzi, 2011; UNEP, • To assess the usefulness of each cleaner 2004; Berkel, 1999). Moreover, most production option adopted. companies in Zimbabwe still lack adequate • To establish the challenges encountered awareness and understanding of the CP in the implementation of cleaner concept, thereby making its implementation production options. low if not impossible (Dandira et al ., 2012). In turn, most industries still rely on ‘end of pipe’ approaches in waste management 509 Ethiopian Journal of Environmental Studies and Management Vol. 7 no.5 2014 Methods and Materials seasons, cold and dry winter and hot and wet Study Area summer. The area has a mean annual rainfall Sino-Zimbabwe Cement Company of 852 mm and mean temperature of 16°C (SZCC) is a cement manufacturing company. (Kusena et al ., 2008). The organization is It is situated in Lalapanzi, Indiva farm about located in the catchment area of Kwekwe 42 kilometers to the east of Gweru City, the River, a major tributary of Sebakwe River provincial capital of Midlands (Figure 1). which drains into Zambezi River. SZCC is The company started its operations in 2001. surrounded by new resettlements in which Other than servicing the local market, SCZZ farmers grow crops and keep livestock. The produces approximately 900 tonnes of resettlement area is serviced by SZCC clinic cement per week for export to the for most of its health needs. The community Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. immensely benefited from SZCC as the The company is located at an altitude of company constructed a secondary school and 1280m above sea level. The soils are deep a police base. SZCC also distribute cement in red clay and well adapted for crop production batches to the locals in order to improve (Chigerwe, 2003). SZCC area falls under sanitation through Blair toilets construction tropical savanna climate with two distinctive for every household. Figure 1: Location of Sino Zimbabwe Cement Company (Kusena et al ., 2012) 510 Overcoming Environmental Challenges in the Cement Manufa cturing ................ KUSENA et al. Data Collection targeted for questionnaires in order to gather Both quantitative and qualitative data was their views on level of pollution over the collected to determine the level of CP years. Key informants including the implementation at Sino Zimbabwe Cement organization’s Finance Manager, Production Company. About 72 workers were selected Manager, Safety, Health and Environment for questionnaires through stratified random (SHE) Officer, Engineering Manager, Human sampling (Table 1). Workers participation resources Manager and the District was meant to gauge their knowledge on CP Environmental Management Agency Officer implementation and impacts. All household were purposively selected for semi-structured heads (17) with homesteads located within interviews. 5km radius of the company were also Table 1: Distribution of workers selected for questionnaires Department Number of workers Sample size (21% of workers population) Laboratory 24 5 Quarry 38 8 Stores 24 5 Security 20 4 Transport 10 2 Production 48 10 Warehouse 25 5 Landscaping 10 3 Marketing 6 1 Human Resource 8 2 Raw materials 30 6 Finance 23 5 Engineering 74 16 Total 340 72 The finance manager was selected organization. Lastly, document analysis because a number of CP options’ based on company’s environmental records