Building materials could store more than 16 billion tonnes of CO2 annually

Achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions likely entails not only lowering emissions but also deploying carbon dioxide (CO2) removal technologies. We explored the annual potential to store CO2 in building materials. We found that fully replacing conventional building materials with CO2-storing alternatives in new infrastructure could store as much as 16.6 ± 2.8 billion tonnes of CO2 each year—roughly 50% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions in 2021. The total storage potential is far more sensitive to the scale of materials used than the quantity of carbon stored per unit mass of materials. Moreover, the carbon storage reservoir of building materials will grow in proportion to demand for such materials, which could reduce demand for more costly or environmentally risky geological, terrestrial, or ocean storage.