BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — A cement manufacturer said they’re disappointed after Boulder County took action to terminate their right to operate a Lyons cement plant.

The company, Cemex, is now calling for the decision to be reversed. This comes after the Boulder County Community Planning and Permitting director sent a notice to the company in April pointing to the significant increase in traffic as the main reason for terminating the company’s operations at the site.

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The county and the Colorado Department of Transportation began investigating the plant back in 2022 after people living in the area complained.

“Our concerns are the air pollution and the safety concerns that come with the trucking, and it’s just their blatant disregard for public safety,” said Sarah Lorang, a Lyons resident.

The county claims the increase in traffic happened because the plant expanded without the proper permission, creating dangerous traffic conditions around the plant. According to a traffic study, the average daily truck trips coming in and out of the plant more than doubled in just one year.

Cemex submitted its response to Boulder County on May 9 regarding the notice of termination.

The company also points to the statewide implications of closing one of three cement plants in Colorado and the loss of “100 good-paying blue-collar jobs.”

The Community Planning and Permitting Director will now review the additional evidence brought forth by Cemex and issue an additional determination. Depending on the outcome, Cemex will have the option to appeal the decision to the Boulder County Board of Commissioners.

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The Board of Commissioners told FOX31 they do not comment on quasi-judicial matters prior to a proceeding.

The full media statement from Cemex is below:

“On May 9, 2024, Cemex submitted its response to the Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting Department’s April 10, 2024, Notification of Determination Regarding Termination of Nonconforming Use. Cemex is disappointed by the Department’s assertion that a continuation in historical truck traffic should result in a loss of Cemex’s long-standing and unrefuted right to continue operation of its Lyons cement plant. The Department’s determination is not only factually and legally incorrect but threatens the livelihoods of Cemex’s local workforce and their families and would set a concerning precedent for any business operating as a legal, non-conforming use.

As part of the recent proceedings on Cemex’s application to extend the life of the Dowe Flats quarry across the highway from the cement plant, Cemex offered Boulder County an opportunity to agree on a future cessation of operations at the Lyons cement plant, which would have limited the permissible truck traffic that is now being used in an attempt to terminate the cement plant operations.   

The Department’s conclusion did not take into account the historical trucking of material to and from the Lyons cement plant, relying instead on a study Cemex voluntarily undertook for the Colorado Department of Transportation for a different purpose and that considered only three days of traffic data in each of two consecutive years. The determination also failed to apply applicable precedent that a nonconforming use does not terminate when traffic occurring off-site changes. 

The attempt to shut down our plant, one of only three cement plants in Colorado, has statewide implications: making it more expensive to build a home during an unprecedented housing crisis. Ninety-five percent of the cement made by Cemex in Lyons stays in Colorado. Cement is a vital component of concrete, giving it strength and durability. Concrete literally is the foundation for the tens of thousands of single- and multi-family homes that Colorado so desperately needs. When the cost of building materials goes up, all Coloradans are hurt, to say nothing of the loss of 100 good-paying blue-collar jobs. 

Cemex looks forward to providing the Department further information and analysis confirming the determination should be reversed.“

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