The lack of correlation between the detection of heavy metals and the onset of illness or health problems was highlighted at the technical meeting between ASL and the municipality of Barletta and the signatories of the memorandum of understanding on the biomonitoring of children’s nails. 

It was also learned that Dr. Agostini Di Ciaula himself explained that epidemiological studies are needed, admitting that this is an evolving scientific area with no benchmark standards that would give cause for any immediate concern. 

The lack of benchmark standards for the biological sample selected was just one of the aspects that Buzzi Unicem had drawn attention to from the beginning, pointing out the apparent shortcomings that could render the conclusions of the study in question entirely hypothetical. 
Another important aspect that must be carefully evaluated by the authorities is the absence of any correlation with the business activities of the Barletta cement plant.

The company therefore reiterates its complete willingness to collaborate with the authorities involved in the project, fully believing in the importance of providing thorough and accurate information to the citizenry rather than data of dubious value that would only create a climate of insinuation. 

The true undertaking lies in conducting the evaluations methodically and scientifically based on objective and detailed data, which we believe is the only way that can provide the appropriate environmental information.

With regard to the study by Mr. Agostino Di Ciaula, conducted at the Barletta cement plant and recently published in the "Exposure and Health" journal, Buzzi Unicem has taken note of the results and has begun a process of in-depth analysis, in order to carefully evaluate the findings of this study.

An initial analysis has revealed obvious shortcomings which could invalidate the study in question. It is therefore considered necessary for the competent authorities to assess the thesis presented in order to provide the public with the proper information.

By way of example, below are some aspects that should be highlighted:

• the emission fallout considered by the research does not reflect the actual situation;
• during the reference period, the kiln at the Barletta cement plant was not running for more than half of the time for air quality purposes;
• the data was published in a biased manner, which did not allow a full analysis of the situation observed;
• for several metals, the study found higher concentrations in the fingernails of children not subjected to the fallout from cement plant emissions;
• the biological samples on the fingernails are prone to external contamination, presenting important critical points in the assessment of environmental exposure in the absence of reliable comparison values. 

The document prepared by Buzzi Unicem will soon be shared with all the competent bodies, with a view to transparency and accountability.

The company reaffirms its commitment to protecting the health and well-being of the communities in which it operates and strives to address in-depth the concerns of many citizens, in everyone’s interest.
 

The key cement plant figures for 2020 are available, reported in individual brochures that can be downloaded from this link as well as obtainable in paper form during plant visits. 

The purpose is to inform our stakeholders about Buzzi Unicem production site activities from both a strictly operational standpoint as well as our presence within the community. More specifically, the data are organized into two main areas, namely the specific figures for each plant and the overall figures for the Group. 
The individual plant figures focus on the environment, employee accidents, events involving the plant and atmospheric emissions. 

The environmental data include the tons of recovered raw materials (circular economy), the kilowatt hours consumed to produce one ton of cementitious material, the megacalories used to produce one ton of clinker, and the environment and safety investments made during the 2018-2020 three-year period. With respect to the atmospheric emissions, we report the figures for dust, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. 

The overall Group figures include the key data for Buzzi Unicem S.p.A, the certifications obtained and the Group’s policies. 

Following the articles that appeared today in the local and Padua press, we would like to clarify once again that the complaint submitted by the Municipality of Monselice and by the local committees refers to events that occurred in 2019, which have already been fully verified by the competent bodies and for which it has been confirmed, on several occasions, that there were no violations by Buzzi Unicem, as well as no consequences for the environment and public health. In particular, we would like to point out that no accidents occurred since, in the event of increases in the CO values in the gaseous effluent, the sector's BAT (Best Available Techniques) provide for the disconnection of the filtration system (electro-filter) installed at the time for safety reasons, prescribing that these moments be contained within the year, something which was amply complied with. Moreover, the replacement of the electro-filter with the bag filter, which took place in February 2020, represents a major investment that demonstrates Buzzi Unicem's commitment to taking all necessary measures to minimize emissions. We are therefore confident that the investigations carried out by the judicial authorities will corroborate the conclusions already reached by the control bodies.

Our activities will continue as usual, in full compliance with the rules, laws and our ethical principles, opening the doors of the cement plant to anyone wishing to visit it and examine in depth any issues of interest to them. Continuing to contribute to enhancing the value of the territory in which we operate through our consolidated relations with all the associations with which we cooperate remains one of our top priorities, which we are committed to pursuing on a daily basis in a professional and transparent manner.
 

Buzzi Unicem S.p.a. participated in the “Impresa + Cultura 2020-2021” competition with various projects and one of these, Artibus, created in collaboration with the Contrada di Marendole in Monselice, was selected as one of the finalists of the award. Against 134 others, Artibus stood out by entering the short list of finalist projects along with 22 other projects. In particular, the project involves the construction of a real sculpture workshop at the plant: this with the aim of recovering and enhancing the manual skills linked to the old trades of the area and providing new professional perspectives to young people.
The winners of the three Category Awards and Special Mentions will be announced at the end of May, but the awards ceremony will take place in early June.
May the best win!

The 2020 edition of Buzzi Unicem’s Sustainability report was presented today.

In addition to accurate reporting of economic, environmental and social indicators, the document also provides an update on objectives and targets, in line with the policies promoted by the company.

From an economic standpoint, the financial results show an improvement on the levels achieved in 2019 despite the difficulties related to the health emergency. The company hopes that both the vaccination plans and the economic stimulus announced by governments will strengthen demand for the sector and contribute to growth.

On the environmental level, the report illustrates the Group's commitment to reducing CO2 which in absolute value, in 2020, was down mainly due to a lower production of clinker and a lower use of electricity.

The year 2021 will be crucial for the definition of new targets for the reduction of CO₂ emissions in the medium term, while the goal of climate neutrality by 2050, already announced by Cembureau - the European Cement Manufacturers' Association - could also be confirmed by the end of the year by the global association GCCA (Global Cement and Concrete Association), of which Buzzi Unicem is a member. For the company this is a complex and stimulating challenge, which it does not want to shy away from.

Social performance highlights the results of good practices in terms of health and safety at work and confirms the downward trend in workplace accidents in recent years. In addition, in order to mitigate the problems related to the health emergency, the company has decided to help people in difficulty in the countries where the Group's plants operate by donating over € 3 million to provide tangible help, in collaboration with various non-profit organizations.

Lastly, the company noticed that interest in non-financial information is growing and thus reiterates its commitment to constantly improving the quality and level of detail of non-financial information.

The first edition of the 2020 Stakeholder Engagement Report aims to report on the many initiatives undertaken by Buzzi Unicem in favor of all stakeholders, mainly in the areas where the company operates.

The projects are part of the Stakeholder Engagement Policy and the intention is to highlight the constructive dialogue established over the years, sharing in a transparent manner the activities underway and the company's short and medium-term strategies.

The year 2020 was a difficult one, but despite everything we managed to strengthen our commitments to the community and establish new partnerships. The report identifies the main areas - social, cultural, educational and sports - on which it was deemed appropriate to focus, also on the basis of the needs expressed by the local communities.

In spite of the many difficulties that schools have had to face in recent months, School-Work activities have continued through the Webinar channel, which has been positively accepted and has become a consolidated practice for keeping in touch with the students.

Buzzi Unicem is fully aware of the importance of building and maintaining relationships of trust, based on mutual respect, active partnership, transparency and long-term collaboration with its stakeholders, in order to create shared value.

More than a year after the request made to the Municipality of Monselice to build a new storage silo at the cement plant, Buzzi Unicem wishes to provide complete and transparent information on the actions it has recently been forced to take, following the Municipality's failure to reply to its requests.

At the end of 2019, the Company has, in fact, started all the necessary procedures for the authorization of a new silo, with minimal capacity and perfectly integrated into the existing structures, determining a change that affects less than 1% of the total current covered areas of the plant. In particular, the silo in question would be used to feed the iron oxides necessary for the production of clinker, with the aim of avoiding open-air deposits, while at the same time improving material management.

To date, the request sent to the Municipality of Monselice for building authorization and the stipulation of a special agreement to govern the best way to integrate the new silo in the reference context has remained unanswered. After the expiry of the terms provided for by the law, the Company was forced to appeal to the administrative judiciary, an act considered necessary to obtain an answer to the requests submitted.

The current position of the Municipality of Monselice appears to be unjustified, since the construction of the project has been approved from an environmental and landscape point of view by the Province of Padua, through a non-substantial modification of the Integrated Environmental Authorization. The Park Authority has also issued the Landscape Authorization, after a procedure that involved the competent Superintendence, in recognition of the unquestionable environmental benefits described above.

Moreover, it is useful to remember that the Veneto Regional Administrative Court has already specified that the Park Environmental Plan "does not determine the necessary cessation of the activity of the plaintiff's Plant, or its delocalization, but only a concertation between the interested party, the Park Authority, and the Municipal Administration as regards the adoption of measures that must be reasonably suitable to mitigate first of all, the impact of the Plant on the context subject to environmental protection and to allow the optimal integration in the territory, thus limiting to extreme cases, and which must be carefully evaluated in all their tangible implications, the hypothesis of the inhibition of the on-site activity on site and its transfer to another location".

It is precisely the Environmental Plan that provides a specific tool for the implementation of works on existing plants. Therefore, the choice to not take a position with respect to an improved solution is simply unfathomable.

We would like to remind you that the Monselice Plant is always open for visits, in compliance with anti-Covid protocols: anyone interested in learning more about the cement production process, its impact and discussing the matter is welcome. We invite you to visit us by writing to visitamonselice@buzziunicem.it

With reference to the request for information regarding the opening of an investigation by the Prosecutor's Office of Padua into emissions from the Monselice cement plant, Buzzi Unicem declares that it is not aware of any criminal proceedings against itself and/or its representatives.

Based on the mentioned period (spring 2019), no anomalies were recorded that were not fully verified by the competent bodies without any environmental criticalities being detected.

Moreover, during this period, the operation of the plant was repeatedly monitored by ARPAV, which ruled out environmental violations by the cement plant.

The relevant documentation is constantly published on the Monselice Municipality website and can be consulted by all those who wish to examine the issues in question in greater depth.

We are open to the highest collaboration and are available should you require further information.

Tne Augusta Contrada di Marendole and the Monselice Plant have entered into a partnership in favor of the “Artibus”.

Founded with the aim of recovering and promoting the manual skills linked to the ancient crafts of the local territory, the project wishes to provide new professional opportunities for young people through the creation of real workshops for goldsmiths, shoemakers, sailmakers, sculptors and makers of musical instruments.

The Plant was deemed to be the most suitable place to carry out the Sculpture Laboratory. For this purpose, an area was allocated and equipped with compressed air, electricity, boulders coming from our quarry in Alonte and all the necessary PPE for the students and the master sculptors.

The works were exhibited on Friday 16 October, on the occasion of the 13^th stage of the Giro d'Italia in Monselice, in the Town Hall garden.

It was an opportunity to make the historical center attractive through the promotion of territorial marketing linked to the craftsmanship of the shops and to show the work carried out with care by the students.

As part of the partnership between Buzzi Unicem's Monselice Plant and the Vicariate of Este and the "Teatrando" project, which aims to develop the talents of young people in the area, a screening of a short film made by them was held at the cement plant for some local schools. The quality of the project and the rare ability of the young artists to involve those present in the grammar of the audiovisual language of the post-show debate, sparked the enthusiastic appreciation of the large audience of students. A cultural event that featured young students in the dual role of spectators and actors, according to a consolidated modus operandi of the "Teatrando" project, aimed at triggering a healthy mechanism of emulation and a process of identification. After the screening, the students were able to visit the plant as part of the Company’s logic of openness to the local community.

As of January 1, Daniele Bogni will be the new Manager of the Buzzi Unicem Plant in Monselice.

With a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Genoa, after an experience in the chemical industry, he started working for Buzzi Unicem. During his professional career, he held the position of Manager in several Italian plants. In the last years he took on the position of Head of Stakeholder Engagement, launching several projects aimed at of interaction with the local community.