ABCC NEWS: Mining and Reforestation: Group Visit to Plantar Siderurgica S. A.

A visit to Plantar Group, one the pioneers in forestry management and in clean production technology of pig iron was marked by the symbolic planting of a tree in honour of the ABCC and COCBA (Camara Oficial de Comercio Brasil-Australia).

Plantar is a national model of charcoal metallurgy, based on the most modern concepts of environmental protection, where the eucalyptus plantations aim to guarantee sustainability to Plantar's metallurgy, for the production of pig iron, utilizing a renewable energy source (charcoal) as well as following the principles of the Kyoto Protocol. The use of renewable biomass eliminates the need for fossil fuel and the consequent emission of greenhouse gases and acid rain. In addition to the liberation of oxygen by the eucalyptus forests, throughout the complete cycle of sustained production, a considerable amount of carbon is removed from the atmosphere, and part of this is fixed into the pig iron produced.

During the visit comprising a group of MPs and government representatives, Mr Helio Marchi (COCBA President), Ms Cristina Talacko (ABCC President), Mr Fabio Marques from Plantar has guided the group to the 3 sites: the eucalyptus plantations, the charcoal production area (blast furnaces) and the siderurgy where the pig iron is manufactured.

Renewable Energy: The charcoal is derived from a renewable raw material - eucalyptus -, which has the power to clean the atmosphere by means of the photosynthetic reaction. The process is simple: during the period of forest growth, the eucalyptus trees capture carbon from the atmosphere and liberate oxygen. An area of forest necessary for the sustained production of 1 ton of pig iron captures, through photosynthesis, more than 19 tons of carbon dioxide and liberates more than 16 tons of oxygen. In the coke process, the carbon necessary for iron reduction is removed from the charcoal where it is fixed as a fossil element. During the process, impurities and polluting elements, such as sulfur, are liberated together with the carbon.
The comparison between the two energy alternatives, translated into numbers, would be: in the industrial coke process, the production of 1 ton of pig iron emits almost 1,900 kg of CO2 into the atmosphere, while the use of charcoal offers a positive balance: 1,100 kg of CO2 are removed from the atmosphere as a final result of the process.

Eucalyptus cloning: As a company at the vanguard in the forestry sector, Plantar has been developing, since 1987, the technology of cloning eucalyptus by means of collecting shoots from a mother-tree. Since reproduction is done by means of macro e micro-estaquia processes, seedlings that are exactly equal to the mother-tree are obtained. With this, it is possible to obtain a high degree of uniformity of the trees and a substantial increase in productivity of the forest. The company also produces seedlings with seeds, since, in addition to allowing for continuous genetic improvement of the species, this allows Plantar to maintain its strong presence in the seedling market. Two nurseries belonging to the company are responsible for the production of the seedlings: one in the city of Curvelo, in the state of Minas Gerais, and the other in the city of Teixeira de Freitas, in the state of Bahia.