Key Developments in Low-Carbon Standards for the Cement and Concrete Industry

In recent years, international carbon emission accounting standards have developed rapidly, forming a series of universal standards for different levels, including organizations, projects, products, and services. Examples include the ISO 14064 series of standards, the Greenhouse Gas Emission Assessment Specification for Goods and Services Throughout Their Life Cycle (PAS 2050:2011), the Carbon Neutrality Declaration Specification (PAS 2060:2010), and the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol).

Simultaneously, some international organizations have issued carbon emission accounting standards primarily targeting enterprises or organizations in the cement industry. The Cement CO₂ and Energy Protocol is a standard for the statistics and reporting of CO₂ emissions in the cement industry, developed by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. EN 19694-3:2016, "Emissions from stationary sources-Determination of greenhouse gas emissions from energy-intensive industries-Part 3: Cement industry," developed by the European Committee for Standardization, specifies the methods for greenhouse gas emission accounting in the cement industry. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) developed ISO 19694-3:2023, "Emissions from stationary sources-Determination of greenhouse gas emissions from energy-intensive industries-Part 3: Cement industry," based on the same series of European standards.

In recent years, my country has also accelerated the construction of a carbon emission standard system for the cement and concrete industry, and has issued relevant national standards applicable to carbon emissions at the organizational and project levels. Currently issued national standards include GB/T 32151.8-2023, "Carbon Emission Accounting and Reporting Requirements-Part 8: Cement Production Enterprises," and GB/T 33756-2017, "Technical Specification for Project-Based Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Assessment-Raw Material Substitution Projects for Cement Clinker Production," etc. However, to date, no national standard applicable to carbon emissions from cement and concrete products has been issued. Group standards for carbon emissions from cement products have been released, such as T/LVFAXIE 002-2024, "Technical Specification for Product Carbon Footprint Accounting-Cement Products," issued by the Hebei Green Low-Carbon Circular Development Association.

Currently, many terms are used to describe the emission intensity of cement or concrete products, such as low-carbon, low-emission, and near-zero emissions. However, these terms remain at the qualitative descriptive stage and have not yet formed a unified emission threshold. Domestically, the term "low-carbon cement" is widely used, considering cement products whose greenhouse gas emissions during production are significantly lower than those of traditional silicate cement as low-carbon cement. However, quantitative standards for this are lacking.

Because there are currently no universally accepted international quantitative standards for low-carbon procurement of cement and concrete products, buyers find it difficult to effectively select low-carbon cement and concrete products. To address this issue, some international organizations have taken the lead in proposing specific standards and procurement requirements for the carbon emission intensity of cement and concrete. For example, the First Movers Coalition proposes that the unit carbon emission of near-zero carbon cement should not exceed 184 kg CO2e/t, and that near-zero carbon concrete products with corresponding compressive strengths should be below the corresponding carbon emission limits. Furthermore, it requires its members to commit to 10% of the cement and concrete products they purchase being near-zero carbon products. In my country, current national standards stipulate limits on cement energy consumption, but lack specific requirements for cement carbon emissions. National standard GB16780-2021, "Energy Consumption Limits per Unit Product of Cement," classifies the comprehensive energy consumption limits per unit product of cement into three levels: Level 1 ≤ 80 kgce/t; Level 2 ≤ 87 kgce/t; Level 3 ≤ 94 kgce/t. Group standards have begun to focus on carbon emission limits for concrete. For example, T/CBMF27-2018, "Evaluation Methods and Requirements for Low-Carbon Products of Ready-Mixed Concrete," published by the China Building Materials Federation, specifies limits on unit carbon dioxide emissions for low-carbon products of different strengths of ready-mixed concrete.

The Need for a More Urgent System for the Evaluation and Demand Standards for the Procurement of Low-Carbon Cement and Concrete Products

Currently, many countries and regions have recognized the important role of government green procurement in the decarbonization of the building materials industry. For example, major economies in Europe and the United States use Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) as a key means to compel companies to focus on the carbon strength of concrete, and some green building certification systems (such as LEED, BREEM, and Green Star) also include EPDs as an important criterion for evaluating green building materials.

In 2021, the United States launched the "Federal Clean Buying Initiative" to promote the use of low-carbon building materials manufactured in the United States. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 proposed providing $4.5 billion to the General Services Administration (GSA), the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Transportation to identify and procure clean building materials for federally funded construction projects. These efforts collectively led to the federal government's first "Clean Buying" standard for low-carbon concrete, issued by the GSA, which manages federal construction projects. Furthermore, New York State passed the Low Carbon Concrete Leadership Act, requiring the government to develop relevant legal guidelines to guide the procurement of low-carbon concrete in government-funded projects.

In my country, the "Government Procurement Demand Standards for Green Building and Green Building Materials," jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in October 2022, is the main basis for government procurement of green building materials. It is being implemented in 48 cities (municipal districts). Currently, concrete is included in these standards, but cement is not yet included. The relevant screening indicators for these standards mainly come from the "Evaluation Standards for Green Building Materials" published by the China Engineering Construction Standardization Association (CECS). Furthermore, T/CECS 10047-2019 "Evaluation Standards for Green Building Materials - Ready-Mixed Concrete" lists Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and carbon footprint reports issued by third-party institutions as options for companies applying for green building material certification