What matters to me today is: Cement is Hard (and It Needs to Stay That Way)
“Hard,” in the context of cement, has everything to do with context. Building stability and foundations depend upon the fortitude of concrete. But cement—the essential ingredient in concrete—is also among the hardest industries to decarbonize.
Nonetheless, California law mandates net-zero greenhouse gas emissions from cement used within the state by 2045. And the California Air Resources Board is developing the strategy intended to get there.
The problem is that cement emissions are not simply the consequence of choosing the wrong fuel. Much of cement’s carbon footprint is inherent in the chemical process of converting limestone into clinker. Eliminating those emissions therefore requires technologies and infrastructure—including carbon capture, alternative materials and fuels, and potentially substantial new energy resources—that are not presently available at the scale necessary to satisfy California’s mandate.
Recent analysis by the Clean Air Task Force underscores the challenge: achieving net-zero cement will require enormous technological deployment, infrastructure development, investment, and supportive policy—while maintaining sufficient cement production to build California.
Cement is only one example of California forging ahead with climate mandates amid technological uncertainty, cost and competitive pressures, and speculation about future innovation.
Federal climate policy may have dramatically changed direction. California has not.
While regulatory attention elsewhere has waned, California continues its unprecedented march toward enforceable requirements governing industrial emissions, commercial activity, and climate-related risk.
The cement may be hard. Meeting California’s mandate could be considerably harder.
That’s what matters to me today in 250 words or less. What matters to you? I’d really like to know.