Visakhapatnam: GreenJams, a Visakhapatnam-based startup, has claimed that it has become the world’s first construction materials startup to publish a third-party verified environmental product declaration (EPD) for its carbon-negative construction blocks (bricks).
According to the startup, this has been possible on account of the biogenic carbon being stored in crop residues, which are used to produce the blocks, namely ‘Agrocrete’.
As per the EPD, its embodied carbon is -0.14 kg Co2/kg, meaning each metric ton of Agrocrete captures 140 kilograms of carbon dioxide within itself. Even upon its end of life, the carbon dioxide captured within the blocks does not escape into the atmosphere, thus retaining its carbon-negative properties virtually forever. In addition, the manufacturing process does not cause any emissions and is based entirely on low voltage electricity. Buoyed by the EPD publication, GreenJams is now planning to shift to completely renewable energy.
GreenJams founder and CEO, Tarun Jami, said that the EPD publication is a landmark for the global and Indian construction industry. “For the first time, the industry has access to a verified carbon-negative building block. We have now unlocked a new massively scalable and ultra-low-cost method for carbon capturing, while creating value for our all-important beneficiaries – the farmers – through Agrocrete. With the 900 million cubic metre potential annual Agrocrete production, we can capture at least 100 million tonnes of Co2 and prevent 350 million tonnes of Co2 emissions. ITC Ltd alone captured 38.5 tonnes of C02 and avoided 144 tonnes of Co2 emissions by using Agrocrete at its project at Kapurthala this year,” said Tarun.