Hemp Carbon Storage

Manufacturing with hemp reduces carbon dioxide by using hemp as a substitute for less sustainable materials. End products derived from harvested hemp that effectively locks in CO2. Such products include, building materials, plastics, cosmetics, composite boards and insulation materials. It is encouraging that global brands such as BMW, Porsche, Nike and Lego are now including hemp in their products.

According to Limetechnology Ltd, Hempcrete locks up around 110kg of CO2 per m3 of wall, compared to the 200kg of CO2 emitted by standard concrete. It also excludes the carbon savings of replacing tree-derived products and leaving trees to continue to absorb CO2.

The vast quantities of hemp derived products and raw materials created by large scale cultivation could replace many oil-based unsustainable products and materials, particularly in construction, locking in captured CO2 and creating secondary benefits to the global environment. In particular, hemp could be used to replace significant quantities of tree-derived products, allowing reduced use of existing tree populations, thus maintaining their CO2 uptake.

Hemp also produces much higher quantities of stronger and more versatile fibre than cotton, and many other fibre crops, which often have very high chemical inputs and water footprints. Processing required by hemp is also at least partially offset by its recycling potential. Industrial hemp has thousands of uses with virtually no waste. This business focuses on carbon capture and storage, but it is worth emphasising that hemp growers have a crop that is valuable and will be in increasing demand.