Environmental impact assessment and sustainability level determination in cement plants (Case study: Shahrood cement plant)

Abstract

Focusing on environmental impact assessment as a new tool to determine the harmful effects of projects on the environment is very necessary. The establishment of cement plants in Iran is accompanied by huge investments that aim to create jobs and have others economic aspects; this trend is on the rise. However, cement plants contribute to environmental pollutions. Therefore, understanding the effect of activities in these potentially polluting centres will greatly help determine future strategies. For the control and prevention of pollution, it is necessary to use a model for the quantitative assessment of environmental impacts. In this study, the Folchi method has been using to recognize and identify environmental pollution by cement plants and effective solutions to decrease the negative impacts of environmental pollution by Shahrood cement plant. According to the results, the contamination generated by the plant, especially for environmental components such as air quality, area landscape, soil of the area, ecology, and area usage are more significant than other environmental components. The EIA results are then obtained and used to assess the sustainability of the complex using Phillips mathematical model. The obtained results indicate that this complex is unsustainable; therefore, preventive environmental activities must be recommended with a preference to reduce environmental damages through its components.