Most people’s association with cement and cement manufacturers is that it is a dirty industry, yet one necessary to produce a key component for construction. Well, that was then. The reality of today, as shown by progressive companies like Holcim, is that improved productivity goes hand in hand with environmental and social sensitivity, not only where the district manufacturing plants are located but also in the country and the region that the company services.
Holcim has been in the Philippines since 1974. It has from that time grown in its presence in the cement industry. Today, it is one of the largest producers of cement (over eight million metric tons a year!). Holcim operates four large cement manufacturing plants in La Union, Bulacan, Misamis Oriental and Davao. All four are ISO certified in terms of environmental management systems, occupational health and safety, and quality management system standards. I had to see one of the plants (in Lugait) to believe it.
I’d been to Mindanao several times but only to Davao and its environs. I had a chance to visit northern Mindanao on an invitation from Holcim, primarily to look at an exemplary environmental project that won the second prize in the Asian leg of the Holcim Awards. This competition is spearheaded by the Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction. It is a competition initiated by Holcim at the Earth Summit in 1992 to promote green design and push sustainable development awareness among architects and others in related fields.
The competition started in 2004. Regional competitions were held in the sectors – Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa Middle East, and Asia Pacific. The three best projects from each region would go on to vie for the global awards (that were held in Bangkok last month). The competition drew a lot of entries – close to 300 – from 17 countries. The entries were varied and ranged from innovative construction methods to new ways of using materials and up to sustainable concepts for the design of architecture and urban design.
The Philippines garnered the second prize of $50,000 and international recognition as it entered the global round. The project was one that sought to regenerate coral reef through a clever concrete underwater structure that was easily prefabricated on land and put together underwater. The official name of the project is "A project to construct substrates for accelerated coral restoration in the Philippines," and its proponents were led by Ronald Roland and Cesar Rodriguez.
Our group of journalists and environmentalists (including Starweek editor Doreen Yu and environmentalist and heritage advocate Tina Turalba) landed in Cagayan de Oro City early in the morning and we motored to Medina, a wonderful town that sat on the bay beside Camiguin island (another place of natural interest and great tourism potential I’d like to see). We were warmly met by the project’s main champions as well as by an old friend, Ernie Pelaez, who was also involved in the project. We were impressed by a brief presentation of the project and shown pictures of how, in one year, their concrete "spider" was able to achieve coral growth and visibly increase the fish population as a result. But the proof is in the seeing, so we went for a short dip.
I had not gone scuba diving in a while but after a quick checkout (and since it was a shallow dive) I managed to jump in with the rest of the gang and check out the award-winning scheme. It was amazing. The corals had actually taken root and were thriving. We swam around and noticed the multitude of fish and the clarity of the water around the installations. We found out later that the original designs were already being improved to be more compact and easier to manufacture and install at any site.
The project did not win the top spots in the global finals held in Bangkok but it elicited media attention and was cited in coverage of the event. The next edition of the regional and global competitions starts next year. I hope that more architects, environmentalists and inventors enter from the Philippines next year. An architectural project (an energy-efficient, climate-responsive train station) from Germany won the top prize in Bangkok.
Later that day, we motored some more to Lugait to visit one of Holcim’s modern cement plants. We arrived at night and stayed at the plant’s commodious staff hostel. The next morning, we toured the plant. I had not realized we were so close to the actual plant because of the lush landscape around the hostel. The plant is the cleanest cement plant I’ve every seen. No visible dust, smell or industrial blight was evident. The main cluster of buildings, towers and conveyor belts are kept spic and span constantly and every space that could be landscaped was (over five hectares of landscape around the main complex alone).
In the adjacent quarries, filter ponds and materials storage, more of the same tack – vegetation and lots of trees. Holcim planted over 20 hectares and over 65,000 trees. The plant’s seedling nursery has a capacity of 30,000 seedlings to make sure that the re-vegetation and phyto-remediation of the quarried sites is continuous. The fauna of the site is also taken care of. A butterfly sanctuary has been built and a large long grass bird sanctuary is being constructed.
Holcim’s sensitivity extends beyond the plant’s gates with corporate social responsibility projects covering the gamut from livelihood centers to housing for relocated families. The cement plant’s clean image does extend beyond the checklist of environmental factors to go and make sure the local and regional community benefits from its operation.
Holcim’s enlightened way of doing business is a concrete example (no pun intended) of how corporations can ensure sustained growth, both for its own benefit as well as the customers, towns, regions and country it serves. And with their Global Awards and advocacy, Holcim does more than its bit to make sure Earth Day lasts more than just a day.