LafargeHolcim reaches settlement with NY state

LafargeHolcim has reached a settlement after resolving alleged environmental violations at its Ravena cement plant in New York, USA.

The company will therefore pay an US$850,000 civic penalty, half of which will go to the New York state, and includes US$212,000 for a local project that would reduce pollution in the Hudson River.

The company will also be required to comply with its water pollution control permit, implement updated water pollution best practices, submit a revised solid waste management facility permit to the state Department of Environmental Conservation, and conduct a third-party audit of its water pollution and solid waste compliance at the facility, according to the Ravena News-Herald.

"Lafarge takes its environmental responsibility very seriously, including addressing legacy problems that existed long before the company's ownership of the Ravena facility," said LafargeHolcim spokesperson, Jocelyn Gerst. "The agreement marks the end of a multi-year process during which Lafarge fully cooperated and worked with environmental regulators in Albany and Washington, DC, to address water management issues caused by management practices that pre-dated its ownership of the plant."