Carbon Negative Concrete

When trees are cut down for their wood new ones are planted, grown for their wood and the process continues. When handled responsibly without deliberate clear-cutting, forests are renewable and impacts on the environment are minimized. Reports show  carbon negative concrete  forests in North America are flourishing due to management practices and long-term planning.

Wood has countless uses, from furniture to paper and cabinetry to framework. We depend upon wood for thousands of products. It can be used in exterior and interior projects, painted, stained, assembled, and shaped. Wood can be reclaimed and used to make something else without depleting resources, or even be returned to the ground to biodegrade. Compared with other building materials, a larger percentage of wood materials can be used which creates less waste. Wood scraps can be used to make other wood products, as a heating source, or made into shavings for animals.

One of the goals of green building is to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions and ideally, produce a carbon-neutral building. According to the U.S. Green Building Council, buildings consume 72 percent of electricity and 39 percent of energy in the United States, accounting for 38 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. Trees absorb carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and return oxygen into the air. Wood also stores carbon until it is burned or decomposes, making it a carbon-negative material.

According to data published by the Architectural Woodwork Institute (AWI), the amount of carbon needed to produce one metric ton of framing lumber or medium-density fiberboard (MDF) is significantly less-or thousands of pounds less than any other material including steel, concrete, or aluminum. Plastic takes the most carbon, accounting for more than 5,000 pounds per metric ton. When the amount of carbon stored in wood is factored in, wood and MDF have negative carbon emissions, creating the base for a carbon-neutral building.

In addition to its green benefits, wood is durable, long-lasting, and aesthetically pleasing. It is available in many different species, grains and colors. Other materials like stone, iron, and coal, are limited in supply and cannot be replenished or recycled like wood.