Decarbonizing Concrete – The Policy Levers

The global and North American cement and concrete industries are making significant progress in lowering the carbon intensity of the built environment. But these industries require the active participation of all levels of government in shaping a more sustainable future.

This is the key message conveyed by Adam Auer, Vice President of Environment and Sustainability at the Cement Association of Canada, speaking as part of the Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality webinar series from the Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition.

Adam provides a distinctly Canadian perspective on how cement and concrete manufacturers are working to mitigate and adapt to climate change and achieve carbon-neutral concrete by 2050.

Of particular importance, he notes, are the role of policy levers and the purchasing power of governments in rewarding leadership and de-risking innovations, particularly in the construction sector, where there’s a fair bit of hesitancy given the critical nature of building tall structures, bridges, and other critical infrastructure.

To achieve carbon neutral concrete by 2050, we will need to work across the entire built environment value chain from the perspective of a circular economy in a whole life context. Starting with the introductory chemistry of Cement and Concrete, we need to cover Construction and Deconstruction, Carbonation, and the incentive factors that drive this.

These include Carbon Pricing and Regulations, Technology Investment and Financing, Performance-based Codes and Standards, Transparency and Disclosure Requirements, and Low-Carbon Procurement Policies and Incentives.

Toward this objective, he notes, Canadian cement manufacturers are establishing collective milestone targets to reduce the carbon intensity of cement. They work with governments and civil society across the construction value chain to accelerate low-carbon technologies and investment, fostering the transition to a safer, climate-resilient economy.

Adam has worked with government, industry, environmental, and other civil society groups to promote and enhance concretes contribution to sustainability, emphasizing life cycle approaches to climate change mitigation and adaptation.  Before joining the CAC in 2012, Adam managed Environment Canada’s Corporate Environmental Innovation Initiative. Adam has assumed the role of President and CEO of the Cement Association of Canada.

There is no silver bullet when getting to carbon-neutral concrete, notes Adam.  It’s going to take a menu of technologies and many routes to get there, and that is why collaboration is so essential, he adds.

He notes that the concrete and construction sectors are among the most emissions-intensive and trade-exposed industries globally. Both are vulnerable to potential cost impacts of climate policies.

Adam’s presentation is one of six webinars organized in 2021 by the Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition in partnership with the Pacific Northwest Economic Region.

You can watch this inspiring webinar here. More information on this webinar series is available here.