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building a better future - Cemex

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our approach<br />

CEMEX is focused on achieving strong environmental performance<br />

by systematically controlling and effectively managing<br />

the impacts of its activities, products, and services and by<br />

making efficient use of natural resources. Our efforts center<br />

on five main action areas:<br />

• A global Environmental Management System (EMS) that<br />

provides for the monitoring and reduction of environmental<br />

incidents and prepares us to achieve external environmental<br />

certification (such as ISO 14001, EMAS, or Energy Star) at<br />

100 percent of our operations by 2015.<br />

• Managing our air emissions through expanded monitoring<br />

throughout our operations and by setting new emissionsreduction<br />

goals for 2015.<br />

• Assessing our water usage and impacts to <strong>better</strong> understand<br />

and mitigate the water risks facing our business.<br />

• Advancing our waste-reduction strategy through improved<br />

recycling efforts and ongoing collaboration with industry<br />

partners.<br />

• Deepening our commitment to biodiversity management<br />

with the introduction of biodiversity action plans (BAPs) at<br />

all of our quarries located in areas of high biodiversity value.<br />

challenges ahead:<br />

Having improved our management and prevention<br />

of Category 1 environmental incidents,<br />

we will refocus our energies on monitoring<br />

and reducing the occurrence of lower-severity<br />

incidents.<br />

With increased knowledge of our company’s<br />

impacts upon water resources, we must improve<br />

our water-measurement systems in order to find<br />

viable ways to reduce water usage.<br />

We must undertake additional efforts to improve<br />

the way we measure and monitor the<br />

generation of waste in our facilities.<br />

introducing the new CEMEX<br />

environmental management<br />

system<br />

In 2011, CEMEX completed an intensive, multi-stakeholder<br />

review of its new global EMS, which will launch in 2012.<br />

The objective of the new EMS is to facilitate the consistent,<br />

complete implementation of risk-based environmentalmanagement<br />

tools across its entire business structure. The<br />

CEMEX EMS comprises key mechanisms for environmental<br />

impact assessment, stakeholder engagement, and accident<br />

response based upon input from a range of environmental<br />

and biodiversity specialists. Our EMS is designed to ensure<br />

legal and regulatory compliance and it’s full compatibility<br />

with the ISO 14001 standard and the EU Eco-Management<br />

and Audit Scheme (EMAS). As of the end of 2011, 86 percent<br />

of CEMEX operations have implemented internal environmental<br />

management systems, and 23 percent have achieved<br />

ISO 14001 certification. As we approach full implementation<br />

of our global EMS in 2015, it is our goal to reach 100 percent<br />

compliance with our internal environmental criteria at<br />

all facilities. In addition, we have a goal to achieve external<br />

environmental certification (ISO 14001, EMAS, or Energy<br />

Star) at 100 percent of our cement manufacturing facilities.<br />

environmental risks, in context<br />

Environmental and biodiversity conditions are changing at unprecedented<br />

rates throughout the world, often irreversibly. Leading research<br />

from organizations such as the World Resources Institute, the US EPA,<br />

and the United Nations Environmental Programme suggests that<br />

pollution and climate change pose serious threats to our most basic<br />

resources—such as clean air, fresh water, and arable land—and have<br />

contributed to the decline of many plant and animal species. What’s at<br />

stake, should these trends continue, is a complex and delicate set of<br />

ecosystem services that support the basic needs of life on Earth. Food,<br />

fuel, clean water, climate regulation, pollination, and disease control<br />

are just a few of the ecosystem services that humans and other species<br />

enjoy. Yet the protection of these natural systems is a challenging,<br />

multifaceted endeavor.<br />

At CEMEX, we understand the need for a holistic approach to environmental<br />

and biodiversity management. Our quarries, plants, and<br />

logistics operations all pose unique environmental challenges, and<br />

we have thoroughly analyzed the actual and potential impacts they<br />

may cause for local habitats, communities, and our customers. Through<br />

this process we have found that air quality, biodiversity, water use, and<br />

waste are the most significant environmental factors facing our company—and<br />

those requiring the most proactive, systematic handling.<br />

To minimize our overall environmental footprint, we have developed<br />

issue-specific management priorities for each of these high-risk areas.<br />

MOST SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL<br />

IMPACTS FACING OUR COMPANY<br />

waste<br />

water use<br />

air quality<br />

biodiversity<br />

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