Buy Clean

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What is this "buy clean" effort and what is HB21-1303?   

HB21-1303: Global Warming Potential For Public Project Materials is a bill that was signed into law this year.  

This law aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within the Colorado  industrial sector. HB21-1303 reduces emissions through the creation of a framework for  the Colorado Department of Transportation and Office of State Architect to consider the total embodied carbon (the manufacturing process used to create these materials) in select construction materials used in state funded projects.  Under this law, state building projects are treated differently than transportation projects like roads and bridges. Building projects will require the use of building materials that are deemed acceptable based on their greenhouse gas intensity by the state architect. Transportation projects will be affected by a policy adopted by the Colorado Department of Transportation.

By considering the embodied carbon used to produce materials, this law empowers the state to purchase materials processed with lower amounts of GHG emissions, ultimately lowering emissions in this sector over time.

Some Background...

Greenhouse gas emissions are a major contributor to the climate crisis. Currently the industrial sector contributes to roughly 10% of our total carbon emissions in Colorado. Globally, concrete and steel account for 14% of all global greenhouse gas emissions. In 2019, the State of Colorado passed HB19-1261, an ambitious piece of legislation aimed at reducing Colorado’s greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2050. In order to meet these obligations, we must work towards reductions in all sectors, including the industrial sector. HB21-1303 focuses on emissions reductions in the industrial sector by using the power of the Colorado budget to purchase raw materials with lower embodied carbon. The policies used to calculate embodied carbon are based on international standards - Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). By using the states purchasing power this law hopes to foster private industry to reduce embodied carbon in private projects as well. 

Want to learn more? Check out this Fact Sheet we put together.

Sign this petition thanking Colorado elected officials for aligning state spending with our climate obligations!