Mexico Cement, better known as CEMEX, is a cement production company based in Portland Monterrey Mexico which purchased Puerto Rican Cement in 2002 to keep expanding in the global market. The cement plant in Ponce Puerto Rico started to burn tires to produce energy which would be used in the cement plant. Ponce is known for being exposed to different pollutants because of the industrial density. That’s why the Environmental Quality Board (JCA) placed a Air Resource Station which measures the quality of the air in this municipality. The municipality as a whole has been in the range of acceptable air conditions, but the area where CEMEX plant is, has a high concentration of emissions which affects the communities next to it. CEMEX during the year 2005 was the industry with most emissions in Ponce tons that year only. In July 2006, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted a CEMEX a permit to create energy for their production by burning tires. 80% of the production costs in cement production are for energy. They proposed to the Solid Waste Administration (ADS) that they would use 25% of all waste tires in the country to produce energy considering the law 171 which was then amended. This would solve part of the problem the country had with tire accumulation in landfills and tire shops which reached 4.7 million tires annually. CEMEX invested $21,000,000 in machinery and emission control equipment for the tire burning process. Different communities in Ponce where concerned about these practices since burning tires releases chlorine which when heated creates dioxins that are carcinogens. Even though the company launched a pamphlet explaining very briefly how they were going to manage the waste tires, they never showed how the emissions where going to be handled and how effective the emission equipment was. This caused protests against the waste tire burnings. A spokesmen from Acción Comunitaria Ponceña por un Ambiente Sano (APCAS) stated in one of the protest that they will reach civil disobedience at the protest if necessary. Pablo Segarra, who is part of the Environmental Board of the College of Medical Surgeons, says that the burning of waste tires in CEMEX have left the college thunderstruck. More than eighty citizens and APCAS demanded the Court of Appeals to revoke the permits CEMEX acquired. The Court of Appeals, on 2008, revoked the permits and demanded CEMEX to be more explicit on the types of emissions and how they would control it, if they wish to continue with the burnings. With the emergence of "Dengue" in the country, the court of appeals ratified in 2010 the permits CEMEX obtained, allowing burning of tires. Leon Rodriguez, a representatives of APCAS, mentioned that CEMEX will begin operations in March 2011, but till now there's no information or signs of the process being executed. There's a lot of controversy with the Court of Appeals permitting CEMEX to keep operating since there's still no Environmental Impact Assessment and the company hasn't approached the communities nearby. This conflict is one more case around the world of communities complaining against waste incineration in cement kilns. The alliance GAIA supports cross-border organizing against cement kiln incineration, including working with national coalitions, helping organize annual international gatherings, and challenging the policies and subsidies that sustain and expand this dangerous practice. GAIA members in many countries have also worked to stop this dirty practice by protesting against individual facilities and securing bans on the burning of certain kinds of waste.