The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that Florida will receive two grants totaling approximately $3.5 million to support efforts in reporting and reducing climate pollution from the manufacturing of construction materials. The EPA estimates that building construction and other infrastructure projects account for over 15% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions.
The grants, part of President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, aim to help businesses produce low-carbon materials by measuring the carbon emissions associated with extracting, transporting, and manufacturing their products. These awards will support the Biden-Harris Administration’s Federal Buy Clean Initiative, which uses the U.S. government’s purchasing power to promote clean construction materials for federal buildings, highways, and infrastructure projects.
The University of Texas at Austin is set to receive $3,268,757 for a project spanning California, Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania. This initiative will develop supply chain emission data sets for three salvage product categories: dimensional lumber, commercial doors, and waste plastic. The project includes creating robust product category rules (PCRs) for salvaged materials and establishing a framework for environmental product declarations (EPDs). Partners include Urban Machine, re:3D, Doors Unhinged, The Reuse People, and Florida A&M University.
Ocala-based Global Bamboo Technologies Inc. (BamCore) will receive $282,768 to develop an industry-consensus approach for dynamically calculating biogenic carbon in EPDs as input into the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment’s PCR Open Standard. This project aims to standardize EPDs leveraging biogenic materials and provide a mechanism for fair comparison between biogenic and non-biogenic materials.
EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe stated: “As America continues to build more and upgrade our nation’s infrastructure under President Biden’s leadership, cleaner construction materials like concrete and steel are increasingly essential for the nation’s prosperity.”
The grants are expected to help businesses create high-quality EPDs that can influence sustainable purchasing decisions by allowing buyers to compare environmental impacts across product lifecycles. Investments in data tools will make EPDs available for 14 material categories including new and salvaged or reused materials.
Additionally, EPA is expanding technical assistance opportunities nationwide. Initial offerings include EPD development support through resources such as those provided by the ENERGY STAR Industrial program.
These initiatives are funded by the Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 which invests significantly in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from construction materials production processes. More than $2 billion has been allocated to both the General Services Administration and the Federal Highway Administration to use low embodied carbon materials in federal buildings’ construction/renovation projects and certain transportation projects respectively.
Selections are contingent upon completing legal and administrative requirements with funding expected by late summer.
