Today, the main environmental and social challenges are the accumulation of waste and climate changes caused by global warming of the Earth's atmosphere. This so-called greenhouse effect is caused by greenhouse gases such as CO₂, N₂O, hydrofluorocarbons, SF₆ and especially CH₄, which is formed and released in large quantities during the decomposition of organic substances stored in landfills of municipal and industrial waste.

The source of a large part of carbon dioxide CO2 is the power industry (thermal power plants, heating plants, household heating), metallurgical industry, transport, industrial activity, production of construction binders (cement and lime), ceramics and glass, metallurgy, steel production. In terms of CO₂ emissions volume, the cement industry also contributes to the production of unwanted CO₂ emissions. The amount of CO₂ from cement production accounts for about 7% of the total CO2 emissions, from iron and steel production for about 10% and energy and heat productions contribute up to 50% of the total emissions. The production of construction binders is associated with an energy-intensive high-temperature firing process, using natural carbonates to produce them, and using fossil fuels to a large extent.

In order to prevent and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in particular CO₂, a scheme for the allocation of greenhouse gas emissions has been introduced in the EU (as in other countries that have ratified the Kyoto Protocol) since 2005.

One of the possibilities of solving global environmental and social problems is the utilization of suitable waste for the production of cements, both in the form of alternative fuels and alternative raw materials. Suitable waste with high energy content is used as alternative fuels, which can replace natural non-renewable fossil fuels in generating the necessary thermal energy and also replace the emitted amounts of CO₂ from fossil fuels. Wastes containing biomass, the combustion of which does not increase CO₂ emissions, are particularly suitable. Biomass combustion is also supported by EU legislation - Directive 2001/77/EC as a renewable energy source. Wastes produced by other industries are used as alternative raw materials in the cement industry. These include mainly slag, fly ash, chemical and energy gypsum, iron additives, etc.