The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) today released its plan to invest $2 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act on substantially lower embodied carbon in some common construction materials. Embodied carbon is the total carbon emissions created by a material’s production from when it started as a raw material in the ground to when it became a key component in an end-use product. 

As part of the agency’s commitment, it announced 150 projects across 39 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico receiving funding from the Inflation Reduction Act investment. The funding will grow the domestic market for low-carbon asphalt, steel, concrete, and glass. 

Following the announcement, the BlueGreen Alliance released a statement from Executive Director Jason Walsh: 

“The more we do to reduce embodied carbon in our manufacturing sectors, the better off our workers, communities, and environment will be. Alongside our partners, the BlueGreen Alliance created the Buy Clean framework to challenge state and federal governments to use their vast purchasing power to provide a market for the cleanest infrastructure materials and to reward domestic companies committed to manufacturing those cleaner goods. This investment will drive demand for these products and help transform our industrial sector with good jobs and cleaner materials. We applaud the GSA for rising to meet that challenge and funding projects that will benefit our communities.”