Wil Srubar has written a column for the Boulder Daily Camera discussing the importance of an often overlooked item in fighting climate change: concrete.
An associate professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, Srubar is conducting groundbreaking research on alternatives to the most widely used building material on Earth.
"If ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ truly envisions itself to be a bold leader on tackling climate change, our state must have a strategy for decarbonizing concrete. Although concrete is not always top of mind, this critical building block presents a wealth of opportunities for sustainability and business innovation — as well as reducing harmful emissions.
"This critical material is the literal foundation of our society; after water, it’s the most widely used substance on Earth. But the production of concrete’s key ingredient, Portland cement (a generic term, not a brand name), generates a staggering 7% of the world’s heat-trapping carbon dioxide — triple the emissions of civil aviation..."