"Landfill Tax on Municipal Waste Must Be Raised"... Cement Industry Proposes Carbon Reduction Solutions (Comprehensive)

'3RINCs 2025' International Academic Conference
500 Experts from 20 Countries Attend
Domestic Cement Industry Participates for the First Time

The domestic cement industry has argued that combustible waste should be used as an alternative raw material to bituminous coal in order to achieve 'carbon reduction,' which has emerged as a global challenge. The industry emphasized that government policies, such as increasing landfill taxes on municipal waste and banning the direct incineration of household waste, must be implemented to ensure a stable supply of alternative raw materials.

On the 12th, the '3RINCs 2025' international conference is being held at Jeju Shinhwa World. Provided by Korea Cement Association

Carbon Reduction Cannot Be Delayed... Cement Industry Attends for the First Time

The Korea Cement Association announced that it participated in the '3RINCs 2025' international academic conference held at Jeju Shinhwa World on the 12th. 3RINCs is an international conference co-hosted by the Korea Society of Waste Management, the Japan Society of Material Cycles and Waste Management (JSMCWM), and the Solid Waste Association of Thailand (SWAT). Experts from various countries discuss directions for promoting waste-to-resource circulation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This year's conference, held for the first time in ten years since 2015, was attended by more than 500 experts in the field of waste resource circulation from 20 countries, including Korea, China, Japan, and Australia, as well as representatives from the domestic cement industry.

In particular, this year's conference drew attention as it marked the first time the domestic cement industry participated. This is due to the growing importance of carbon reduction in the Korean cement industry amid increasingly stringent environmental regulations worldwide. The cement session featured eight panelists, including Kim Jinhyo, attorney at Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, Camilla, PhD at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Hong Suyeol, Director of the Resource Circulation Social Economy Research Institute, and Bae Jaekeun, professor at Seoul National University of Science and Technology. They presented on the current status of carbon neutrality in the Korean cement industry and strategies for using alternative raw materials.

Kim Seokwan, president of the Korea Society of Waste Management, said, "The domestic cement industry has been participating in the stable use of waste as fuel in the cement manufacturing process based on decades of experience maintaining high-quality cement." He added, "In particular, the effectiveness of alternative fuels has been greatly improved by applying technologies such as oxy-fuel combustion to cement kilns." He continued, "At this conference, we expect that the domestic cement industry, which has sufficient capabilities, will meet high expectations as a key player in the resource circulation field and reaffirm its responsibilities as a core industry."

"Ban Direct Landfilling of Combustible Waste, Raise Landfill Tax"

Hong Suyeol, Director of the Resource Circulation Social Economy Research Institute, is presenting at the '3RINCs 2025' International Academic Conference held on the 12th. Provided by Korea Cement Association

The main topic of the conference was how to ensure a stable supply of combustible waste as an alternative raw material. Hong Suyeol emphasized that the role of domestic cement production facilities must be expanded to handle the rapidly increasing volume of combustible waste each year. According to research presented by Hong, the amount of combustible waste generated in 2022 was approximately 41 million tons, of which 3.2 million tons were landfilled. With the ban on landfilling combustible waste in the Seoul metropolitan area set to take effect next year, it is expected that more than 3 million tons of additional waste will be supplied to the market. Hong argued that the role of the domestic cement industry is essential to process this waste in a stable manner.

Hong pointed out, "Plans to expand public incineration facilities by local governments are being delayed due to opposition from local residents, and the actual operation of these facilities is also uncertain." He continued, "Although private incinerators have been proposed as an alternative, they cannot process landfilled municipal waste, so it is difficult to find a solution without involving the cement industry."

There was also an opinion that economic measures, such as raising the landfill tax for municipal waste to European levels, should be implemented. Hong said, "Korea's landfill tax for municipal waste is only 15,000 won per ton, which is extremely low compared to other countries." He added, "The next administration must raise the landfill tax for municipal waste, and at the same time, measures such as banning the direct incineration of household waste should also be pursued."

There were also proposals for environmentally friendly ways to treat volatile chlorides and alkaline substances generated during the combustion of PVC waste plastics. The cement industry has been using chlorine bypass devices (CBPD) to prevent chlorides and alkaline substances produced during the incineration of PVC waste plastics from accumulating inside the kiln. However, most of the dust generated by this process (equivalent to 2% of clinker production) has been landfilled, leading to environmental pollution concerns.

Bae Jaekeun, professor at Seoul National University of Science and Technology, stated, "Chlorine bypass dust contains components that can combine with greenhouse gases. If used in carbonation reactions, it can store carbon dioxide generated during cement production in a stable carbonate form." He emphasized, "Other than substituting raw materials and fuels, this is virtually the only way to directly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the cement industry." He also noted that the main components of cement clinker, such as calcium and silica, could be replaced with major components of chlorine bypass dust, allowing for the recycling of cement industry waste.

However, the cement industry's recycling of combustible waste is expected to face difficulties due to strong opposition from the incineration industry. Hong Suyeol commented, "From a third-party perspective, the incineration industry's opposition only increases public anxiety about generating energy by burning waste and offers no other social benefits." He added, "The industry must work together to conduct campaigns and other efforts to alleviate public concerns."