Wind Fencing Installed at Lafarge’s Exshaw Cement Plant
Lafarge is committed to strengthening our relationship with the community in Exshaw, and our latest efforts aim to further this goal. The Exshaw cement plant recently introduced a wind fence near the quarry on site, part of a multi-layered approach to reduce fugitive dust from the operation.
This decision is a result of a concentrated effort to reduce fugitive dust from travelling into the residential parts of the Bow Valley, thus improving the air quality amid the beautiful Exshaw landscape. The Exshaw plant is located in a narrow part of the Bow Valley, which has strong westerly winds that make it challenging to manage fugitive dust. The team chose to install a wind fence to achieve the intended results after studying the diverse options available for the following reasons:
Using a fence for wind breaking is one of the more sustainable and environmentally friendly methods to prevent high velocity winds from carrying fugitive dust away during stockpile activities like the loading or removal of products.
The research ‘Windbreak Effectiveness for Storage Pile Fugitive Dust Control: A Wind Tunnel Study’ by B. J. Billman Stunder & S. P. S. Arya substantiates the effectiveness of using windbreakers as a technique to reduce fugitive dust in the air, given that the fence meets the design and positioning criteria.
Windbreakers, like wind fences, reduce fugitive dust by breaking the high wind velocities. They are positioned to intercept the wind before it reaches the material or on the downwind side of a pile (as shown in the picture), thereby reducing the chances of erosion across the pile.
The installation is a significant step in the right direction because of the detailed engineering needed to set it up at the Exshaw cement plant. High winds in the area and the narrow valley terrain were critical factors that dictated the final design, resulting in the following highlights:
● The cables holding the material are 3/4 inch thick braided steel cable, and the supporting posts are 10" in diameter with 1-inch thick walls
● The posts are anchored 2 meters into the solid bedrock
These features are essential because, aside from the 100km/hr winds, they will also be able to sustain under freezing rain and snowfall, conditions that routinely affect the Bow Valley.
The current installation is a prototype and will help the team review its design effectiveness. We plan to review its performance, make required adjustments, and extend the fencing to cover a larger area to reduce fugitive dust as much as possible.
We are hopeful that this development will contribute positively to our ongoing collaboration with the local community.
