UC Davis

The continued increase in global demand for construction materials is driving notable environmental burdens from their production, particularly greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In turn, there is growing interest from policy makers, industry sectors, and academics to derive emissions mitigation strategies that can support achieving the global goal of net-zero CO2 emissions by mid-century. To meet these aims, collective and swift action is required to evaluate the efficacy, feasibility, and equity of GHG mitigation strategies. Yet, current methods do not consistently support systematic assessments leveraging open data sharing platforms, integration of potential co-benefits or unintended consequences of decarbonization efforts on other environmental impacts, the implications for neighboring communities near industrial facilities, or routes to train the next generation of engineers to adequately deal with these complexities.

This research aims to address these research gaps through the formulation of open-datasets and tools, a net-zero emissions roadmap that integrates technology readiness, cost, and strategy efficacy, a geographic-driven investigation of disproportionate impacts, and engineering curricula advancements. In the first stage and second of this research, the cement and concrete industries are examined. Namely, systematic, quantitative methods for addressing the role of varying parameters to alter cement and concrete GHG emissions are derived using openly accessible data. Building from these methods, routes to reaching net-zero GHG emissions are examined for the cement industry in California, where there is a mandate to mitigate these emissions by 2045. In the analysis of routes to net-zero emissions, the effects of decarbonization strategies on the creation of air pollutants, which are a local impact that burden neighboring communities (unlike climate change, which is a global impact), are also considered. Noting the imperative that decarbonization efforts do not impose disproportionate impacts on historically marginalized communities, this research expands to address the geographic distribution of construction building material production relative to various population groups in the United States and methods to integrate community needs are highlighted. Finally, a crucial long-term measure to advancing industrial decarbonization efforts is transforming engineering education to develop future engineers who have a deep understanding of environmental sustainability with an equally strong emphasis on social justice and community engagement. And as such, this work establishes a pilot study course and conducts research on the influence of pedagogical approaches to better preparing engineering students to tackle such complex challenges. Together, these findings will help practitioners derive new methods that can be leveraged to support efforts towards a rapid and equitable industrial decarbonization, driven by new generations of technically competent and socially conscious engineers.