Millions of tons of coal ash left over from burning the planet's dirtiest fossil fuel are sitting in ponds and landfills, able to leach into waterways and pollute soil. But this toxic waste may also be a treasure trove for the rare earth elements needed to propel the world toward clean energy.
Scientists analyzed coal ash from power plants across the United States and found it could contain up to 11 million tons of rare earth elements — nearly eight times the amount the US has in domestic reserves — worth around $8.4 billion, according to recent research led by the University of Texas at Austin.
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📸: Gerry Broome/AP
Developers and contractors will need stronger whole life carbon assessment, lifecycle assessment, life cycle thinking in construction and life cycle cost discipline, backed by sustainable material specification, environmental product declarations (EPDs) and verified low embodied carbon materials.
The shift strengthens sustainable building design, low carbon design and eco-design for buildings, rewards low carbon construction materials and supports a circular economy in construction. It also raises the value of BREEAM and BREEAM v7 pathways for net zero whole life carbon, net zero carbon buildings and better control of the carbon footprint of construction.
UK backing for Agratas’s Somerset battery gigafactory and ITM Power’s Sheffield electrolyser expansion supports the industrial base behind green infrastructure, electrification and hydrogen systems, all of which matter for environmental sustainability in construction, energy-efficient buildings and low carbon building supply chains.
Record solar output is cleaning the grid faster, improving the case for all-electric sustainable design and carbon footprint reduction in operations. The harder challenge remains embodied carbon in materials, building lifecycle performance and the wider environmental impact of construction. A weaker UK market leaves sustainable building practices, circular construction strategies, end-of-life reuse in construction and the broader task of decarbonising the built environment dependent on execution, resource efficiency in construction and resilient supply chains.
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