In The News

Headquartered in Toronto, St. Marys Cement Inc., has developed its very own system for reducing the carbon footprint from cement-producing plants. According to the Toronto Star, a proportion of the plant's emitted CO2 gas is diverted into a high-tech facility where a species of algae "uses photosynthesis to absorb the carbon dioxide and release oxygen in return".

"It's a small model of what a big full-scale facility could be," says Martin Vroegh, environment manager with St. Marys Cement Inc., headquartered in Toronto. The algae project, which went live last fall, is believed to be the first in the world to demonstrate the capture of CO2 from a cement plant."

"The idea, Vroegh explained, is to turn CO2 into a commodity rather than treat it as a liability. The CO2-consuming algae will be continually harvested, dried using waste heat from the plant, and then burned as a fuel inside the plant's cement kilns. Alternatively, the green goop can be processed into biofuels for the company's truck fleet."

"In essence, St. Marys wants to grow its own fuel in a way that's constantly recycling the CO2 emissions from its plant, allowing it to produce what could become "green" cement."

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original source the Toronto Star