Technical & Practical

TECHNICAL SECTION

Environmental
There is now a much greater awareness of the environmental impact of the way we live, than at any time in the past. International agreements like Kyoto and reports such as the Stern report show that we must act now to combat climate change. They start to set out a framework for reducing our carbon emissions in order to minimise climate change but recognise that change is already a reality. Tradical^® Hemcrete^® is a material that has a very low environmental impact, locks up carbon (negative emissions) and can create very thermally efficient, healthy, comfortable buildings.

Carbon Sequestration
The construction and use of buildings accounts for over 50% of the UK's CO₂ emissions. It is vital that we design and construct buildings that use as little energy as possible in their use. However, it is also possible to make a significant additional contribution to the reduction of CO₂ emissions by building with Tradical^® Hemcrete^®. When hemp grows it takes in CO₂ and converts it into glucose, cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin. The CO₂ molecule is broken down, with the carbon locked up in the plant and the oxygen given back to the atmosphere. It takes 1.84 tonnes of CO₂ to make each tonne of dry hemp. Therefore each tonne of Tradical^® Hemcrete^® has carbon trapped within it equivalent to 330kg of CO₂. The more Hemcrete^® we use, the more CO₂ is removed from the atmosphere. The materials used in the construction of the walls of a typical house are responsible for tens of tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Replacing all, or some, of these materials with Tradical^® Hemcrete^® can make a saving of up to 50T of CO₂ per house.

Current Government targets are to improve the thermal performance of buildings to such an extent that the emissions from heating fuels can be reduced by 1T per year per house. The Chancellor has recently announced that he wants all houses to be zero-carbon by 2016. Tradical^® Hemcrete^® is better than zero-carbon because it locks up carbon as well as being thermally efficient. The thermal efficiency of Tradical^® Hemcrete^® is also better than many conventional walling materials and this achieves even better insulation. Making a difference of 50 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per house is a powerful weapon in the fight against climate change.

Life cycle analyses
The French Government have now carried out a full and detailed life cycle analysis of Tradical^® Hemcrete^® in accordance with ISO 14040. This extensive report is available in French and is currently being translated into English.

Despite the fact that certain very conservative assumptions are made, the LCA shows Tradical^® Hemcrete^® to be an extremely environmentally friendly material and validates the information given in this pack.