Today the White House has announced a new task force, to promote sustainable manufacturing, including the use of construction materials with lower lifecycle emissions.

The “Buy Clean Task Force” will be led by the Council on Environmental Quality and White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy, in order to: “Create markets for low carbon materials,” according to an administration official.

The race to net zero in manufacturing with new technology

In December, President Joe Biden said that the US government would reduce its emissions by 65% by 2030 and continue to race towards net zero emissions by 2050.

One major source of global carbon dioxide emissions is the construction industry. The production of cement (with the main ingredient being concrete), totaled 7% of global CO2 emissions in 2019.

“If you look at steel, cement and aluminium, the real opportunity to decarbonize those sectors comes from harnessing technologies that really haven’t been available in this sector in the past,” said a White House official.

The “Buy Clean Task Force” will endorse ways to increase federal purchases of clean building materials and research the materials, to prioritise for consideration in federal government purchases.

The government goes green for net zero & sustainable transport 

There are some other goals for the 2030s covering sustainable transport. 

By 2035, President Biden plans to stop government purchases of gas-powered vehicles. The federal government will procure electricity only from carbon-free and non-polluting sources, by 2030.

The Transportation Department will also unveil new efforts to boost use of low-carbon materials in federal projects.