MIT’s CSHub: Concrete as a Sustainability Solution to Economic, Environmental, & Social Issues

Dr. Jeremy Gregory, Executive Director-Massachusettes Institute of Technology (MIT) Concrete Sustainability Hub (CSHub), presented information on “Concrete as a Sustainability Solution” to the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis in early August in Washington, DC. Citing recent negative reporting on greenhouse gas emissions, he explained to committee members and staffers how cement and concrete can be part of the solution to climate change and other societal issues.

Dr. Gregory framed the climate issue in the larger context of sustainability, commenting that “in order to meet societal goals, people need highways, buildings and other structures”, adding that in spite of criticism of the industry, concrete is very much a low-impact material. In fact, concrete has a lower embodied energy by mass than other construction materials (like asphalt, steel, timber, plastics, aluminum, etc.).

Leif Wathne, Executive Vice President-ACPA, said, “MIT’s research and presentation adds clarity to the issue of concrete as a sustainability solution. Dr. Gregory’s presentation was well-received and provided credible, honest and meaningful information on this very important topic. This information, as well as other information from the cement and concrete industries, will allow people to make informed decisions rooted in science.”

Covered topics (and more):
Many economic, environmental, and social challenges facing society
Investments in infrastructure—insufficiency
Critical to meeting UN sustainable development goals (SDGs)
Affordable housing shortage—crisis and possible solutions
Significant costs due to weather and climate disasters
Cement and concrete societal goals
Concrete in the political dialogues
Critical life cycle perspectives and trade-off analysis
Cement and concrete’s environmental impact can be lowered using today’s technology
A life cycle perspective should be used to evaluate concrete’s environmental impact
Investing in hazard mitigation can pay off
Carbon uptake in concrete

Concrete as most-used building material worldwide—Nearly all buildings;
Concrete mixtures designed to meet performance requirements
Cement drives concrete’s environmental impact
Cement manufacture at a glance
Roadmap for cement CO2 emissions reductions
Approach to quantify resilience of built infrastructure: Incorporate quantitative hazard resistance into LCC
Recommendations for reducing life cycle impacts

For the full presentation titled “Concrete as a sustainability solution”, please go to: http://www.acpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/JGregory-DCBriefing-080719.pdf