UAE cement company finds use for camel dung

Gulf Cement is preventing thousands of tonnes of camel waste from going to landfill. The cement company is cutting its emissions while using camel dung to supplement its fuel usage.

Under the government-run scheme, farmers of Ras-al-Khamaih deposit camel waste at designated collection stations to be blended with coal to make a fuel for Gulf Cement.

"People started to laugh, believe me," said Mohamed Ahmed Ali Ebrahim, manager of Gulf Cement Co.  "We heard from our grandfathers that they used cow dung for heating. But nobody had thought about the camel waste itself."

The cement plant uses 50tpd of camel dung. In the UAE there are some 9000 camels used in milk production, racing and beauty contests which provide more waste for fertiliser than can be used by the local farmers.

The government wants to divert 75 per cent of all waste from landfill in the UAE by 2021. The scheme could be widened to start using chicken and industrial waste as well as sludge from water treatment.