In one of our guest blogs for the Greater Manchester Green Summit, earth4Earth discuss using low-carbon materials, and adopting innovations that cut or even store emissions, enabling a more sustainable built environment.
The construction industry faces one of the biggest challenges in the transition to net zero: reducing the carbon impact of buildings and materials. At earth4Earth, we develop carbon-negative building materials designed to address this challenge.
While operational emissions are falling, embodied carbon from construction materials is becoming the dominant source of emissions. This is where innovation in materials plays a critical role.
Globally, buildings and construction account for a major share of carbon emissions and energy demand. UNEP’s Global Status Report highlights that in 2022 the sector was responsible for 37% of energy and process-related CO₂ emissions and 34% of global energy demand1. Decarbonisation in construction therefore spans two challenges: operational carbon (the energy used to run buildings) and embodied carbon (materials and construction, maintenance, and end-of-life).
Operational carbon is already being tackled through electrification, renewable power, and better building performance. But as operational emissions fall, embodied carbon impacts become more dominant — especially for new builds and major refurbishments. In the UK, UKGBC notes embodied carbon from construction and refurbishment is around 20% of built environment emissions2, and it remains largely unregulated, with progress slower than needed.
So, what does “construction decarbonisation” look like in practice?
1) Prioritise retrofit and reuse wherever feasible: keeping existing structures avoids the upfront carbon cost that comes with new materials.
2) Specify low-carbon materials, credibly. Materials like cement and steel are essential but carbon-intensive, so decarbonisation requires substitution, innovation, and transparency. This is where verified declarations matter: EPDs and LCAs help stakeholders compare solutions and avoid greenwashing.
3) Decarbonise manufacturing and lock carbon away. Alongside “avoid & reduce”, we need scalable routes that eliminate process emissions and (where appropriate) store carbon in stable mineral forms. Our technology locks carbon permanently into mineral form, turning building materials into long-term carbon stores.
At earth4Earth, we apply these principles on real projects. Our UK pilot project, the Wonderwall, shows how a simple format, such as an indoors brick wall, can be converted to a carbon-negative structure: 1,200 N10 bricks form a 4 m × 4 m internal cladding at Sustainable Ventures, Manchester. Meanwhile, our China pilot project demonstrates scale and accounting rigour: 200,000 bricks have been deployed in a water treatment project, with projections of 36.5 tonnes CO₂ captured over 20 years and 16.4 tonnes net removal after embodied emissions and transport.
Decarbonising construction won’t be achieved by a single technology or policy, but through coordinated change across design, manufacturing, and assessment. As headline sponsor of Greater Manchester Green Summit 2026, we’re excited to help turn that possibility into real-world delivery.
