WASHINGTON – The Biden administration said Monday it will invest $2 billion in 150 federal building projects in 39 states that use materials that minimize carbon emissions, its latest effort to tackle climate change through government purchasing power.
The General Services Administration will prioritize the purchase of asphalt, concrete, glass and steel produced and disposed of with lower levels of greenhouse gas emissions that meet standards for environmental products.
“The US government has a large share of the market -especially concrete and asphalt- and that I think is helping to drive the industry towards achieving an increasing level of innovation when it comes to decarbonization,” John Podesta, senior adviser to President Joe Biden, told Reuters.
Podesta oversaw the implementation of the administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, which provided more than $3 billion to GSA to invest in buildings to reduce carbon emissions.
He said the investment would help tackle emissions from the hardest-to-decarbonize sectors.
Podesta and GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan announced the investment during a visit to Topeka, Kansas, where the federal building and courthouse will receive $25 million of the $2 billion in planned investments to retrofit the facility to make it more energy efficient.
The Biden administration will invest $2 billion in 150 federal building projects in 39 states to minimize carbon emissions.REUTERS
Asphalt, concrete, glass and steel are among the most carbon-intensive building materials. They account for nearly half of all US manufacturing greenhouse gas emissions, according to the GSA.
The administration has a goal of having a net zero emissions federal building portfolio by 2045 and net zero emissions in government procurement by 2050.
“This funding helps create a market for low- and zero-carbon materials, further incentivizing industrial producers to take advantage of other IRA programs aimed at helping them reduce their emissions,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement.
Other selected buildings are located in Boston, Massachusetts; Cleveland, Ohio; Salt Lake City, Utah and San Francisco, California.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
