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How the U.S. Government Encourages Green Manufacturing
Construction workers building an eco-friendly school
How sustainable are electric cars whose manufacturing process relies heavily on natural gas? How “green” are LEED-certified buildings built with carbon-intensive materials like glass and concrete? Will it become a thing?
Even when creating sustainable products, industrial activities such as construction and manufacturing contribute significantly to pollution. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these activities account for nearly one-third of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Addressing climate change is one of President Joe Biden's top priorities, and his administration aims to reduce these unsustainable emissions as part of an executive order to achieve net-zero carbon emissions across the U.S. economy by 2050. It takes aim at some industrial practices.
Machinery Partner examined the U.S. government's efforts to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing processes over the past several years. Between executive orders and funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021 and the Suppressing Inflation Act of 2022, there has been substantial activity to reduce industrial pollution in the United States. This has taken the form of direct investments in research and technology to reduce pollution in manufacturing, as well as using the federal government's purchasing power to prioritize products with lower carbon footprints.
These efforts not only protect our planet from the devastating effects of climate change, but also support U.S. manufacturing. By focusing investment on low-emission products made in the United States, the federal government can support domestic businesses and increase jobs in an industry that has struggled for decades.
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Grants and direct investment
The factory production plant is lined with rolls of aluminum.
The Department of Energy allocated more than $6 billion in funding for clean manufacturing technology projects in March 2023. With this funding, the federal government will cover up to half the cost of selected early-stage private projects and reduce emissions in energy-intensive industrial processes. The program, called the “Industrial Demonstration Program,” will select projects and finalize awards by spring 2024.
In June 2023, a small DOE program awarded $135 million to 40 projects to research, develop, and pilot scale methods to reduce energy consumption and emissions in the industrial sector. The projects, conducted at national laboratories, universities and companies across the United States, focus on reducing emissions in cement and concrete, food and beverages, chemicals, petroleum refining and steel.
The following month, the Department of Energy also announced $100 million in grants for state and local governments and utilities to procure and use products made by converting carbon emissions. These grants will cover up to half the cost of these materials for awardees, creating further demand for these low-emission products in the economy.
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Green purchasing for federal projects
California High Speed Rail construction project in Hanford.
In addition to these direct funding opportunities, federal agencies are beginning to require low-emission materials for infrastructure projects.
Biden's 2021 executive order created the Buy Clean Initiative, which prioritizes the use of low-carbon, American-made construction materials in federal projects. On top of $630 billion in annual federal spending, even more state spending is putting pressure on green efforts in U.S. manufacturing.
After years of developing and testing low-emission materials requirements, the General Services Administration released formal standards for asphalt, concrete, glass, and steel in December 2023. Last month, the agency also announced plans to invest $2 billion in more than 150 federal projects that utilize these low-emission products. GSA estimates that incorporating these low-carbon materials will reduce carbon emissions from these projects by tens of thousands of tons.
Throughout 2023, GSA and other agencies announced several high-profile projects using low-carbon procurement standards, including the new headquarters for the Department of Homeland Security and the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Customs House in New York City.
GSA established its first “Buy Clean” standards for concrete and asphalt in March 2022 and by December was awarding concrete contracts based on the new concrete standards.
GSA has drafted more comprehensive requirements and set carbon emission standards for concrete/cement, asphalt, steel, and glass by May 2023. After the announcement, the agency ran a six-month pilot program applying the requirements to 11 federal projects, including new construction, land port, modernization, and paving projects. The total value of materials affected across these projects totaled approximately $300 million.
In fall 2022, the Department of Transportation announced the Buy Clean Policy. This is another major achievement considering that transportation accounts for nearly another third of greenhouse gas emissions. Through October, the department has allocated $7.1 million to state departments of transportation to identify ways to reduce emissions in highway construction, with an emphasis on sustainable pavement. Other agencies, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, are also readily incorporating low-carbon materials into their projects.
These federal programs are paving the way to making U.S. industrial production greener by encouraging green manufacturing and creating demand for low-emission materials.
Story editor: Shannon Luders Manuel. Copy editing by Paris Close.
This story originally appeared and was produced by Machinery Partner
Distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
