Low-Carbon Concrete Procurement Guide
Concrete is one of the most widely used building materials in Canada and plays a critical role in both housing and infrastructure. As demand for lower-carbon buildings grows, project teams need practical guidance on how to specify and procure concrete that reduces embodied carbon while meeting performance, durability, and cost requirements.
The Low-Carbon Concrete Procurement Guide builds on the research and stakeholder engagement completed through CAGBC’s Burying Carbon in Buildings initiative funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada. It provides practical guidance to help project owners, designers, developers, contractors, and procurement professionals confidently specify and procure lower-carbon concrete, including concrete produced using carbon capture and utilization in cementitious building materials (CCU-CBM) technologies.
The goals of this Procurement Guide are to:
- Support project teams in specifying and procuring lower-carbon concrete for buildings and infrastructure.
- Provide practical procurement strategies and guidance for concrete made with CCU-CBM technologies.
- Help owners and practitioners reduce embodied carbon while maintaining concrete performance, durability, and constructability.
- Accelerate market adoption of lower-carbon concrete by translating technical research into practical procurement actions.