A new report from the Pembina Institute says Ontario and Alberta can help unlock long-term industrial investment and support a “one Canadian economy” by accelerating the use of lower-carbon concrete in public infrastructure through modernised standards, procurement reforms and targeted workforce training.
The study, Building One Canadian Economy: Accelerating adoption of lower-carbon concrete in Ontario and Alberta, argues that aligning provincial and federal approaches to concrete standards and procurement would support Canadian innovation, protect existing jobs and position the country as a leader in clean construction.
“Canada can build better and smarter with lower-carbon concrete — helping create ‘One Canadian Economy’ that strengthens communities, supports high-quality jobs and secures a competitive, future-ready economy,” said Kari Hyde, Manager of Utility Integration and Demand-Side Management at the Pembina Institute. Hyde said modernising specifications, adopting Buy Clean-style procurement and investing in workforce readiness can “demonstrate national clean construction leadership.”
Concrete is the second most widely consumed material on earth after water, and its core ingredient, cement, is highly emissions-intensive. Global research cited by the International Energy Agency and others estimates cement and concrete account for roughly 7–8 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions. An NPR climate series has described concrete as “emissions-intensive” even as demand continues to grow, highlighting Canadian firm CarbonCure among companies working to store CO₂ permanently in concrete.
In Canada, cement alone accounts for about 1.5 per cent of national greenhouse-gas emissions, and the federal government has adopted a Roadmap to Net-Zero Carbon Concrete by 2050 to guide industry and policy makers.
At the same time, the sector plays a significant economic role. According to the Pembina report, concrete production supports more than 166,000 jobs and contributes $76 billion annually to Canada’s economy. In Alberta, the cement and concrete industry generates $16 billion a year and supports 39,000 jobs; in Ontario, the sector contributes $26 billion and supports 62,000 jobs across mining, manufacturing, construction and engineering. Nearly one-third of all concrete in Canada is purchased by governments, underlining the importance of public procurement as a potential driver of market change.
The Pembina report recommends that provinces modernise concrete codes and standards by shifting from prescriptive requirements to performance-based specifications, and by improving alignment across provinces and municipalities. Under performance-based approaches, producers are required to meet defined strength, durability and safety outcomes, but have flexibility to use lower-carbon mixes, supplementary cementitious materials or new technologies to achieve those results.
The report argues that fragmented and prescriptive standards can slow adoption of new materials, raise costs for suppliers operating in multiple jurisdictions and discourage investment in lower-carbon options. Harmonising standards, Pembina says, would reduce regulatory friction and help build “one Canadian economy” in which producers can scale up cleaner products for a national market.
Eduard Cubi, Associate Principal at engineering firm Introba, said the current “nation-building moment” — marked by major infrastructure and housing needs — is the right time to align regulation and procurement with lower-carbon materials. “It is critical that we shape the Canadian regulatory landscape and procurement processes to enable and support the production and adoption of lower-carbon concrete,” he said.
The IEA’s 2024 Breakthrough Agenda work on cement similarly calls for governments and industry to revise standards and accounting rules by 2025 to support net-zero-compatible cement and concrete, underscoring the importance of consistent, interoperable methods for measuring embodied carbon.
With governments purchasing a large share of concrete used in Canada, Pembina identifies public procurement as a central tool for accelerating lower-carbon mixes. The report urges provinces to align with the federal Treasury Board’s Standard on Embodied Carbon in Construction, which requires a 10 per cent reduction in embodied carbon for ready-mix concrete used in federal projects.
Pembina says adopting this standard provincially and municipally would create predictable, technology-neutral demand signals and give producers confidence to invest in new production methods. It also recommends that provinces use carbon-pricing revenues and other fiscal tools to help offset early costs and support private-sector procurement of lower-carbon concrete.
Internationally, Reuters reporting shows that major building-materials companies are already repositioning for a low-carbon concrete market. In July, Ireland-based CRH announced a US$2.1 billion deal to acquire Eco Material Technologies, a U.S. producer of near-zero-carbon cement using supplementary cementitious materials, as part of its strategy to expand its North American low-carbon product portfolio. In June, Heidelberg Materials reported it had sold out its 2025 production of evoZero, a net-zero cement produced at a carbon-capture-equipped plant in Brevik, Norway.
These moves, according to the Reuters reports, reflect growing demand from developers and public clients looking to cut the climate impact of construction materials.
Beyond policy and procurement, Pembina stresses that workforce readiness is essential to ensure lower-carbon concrete is deployed correctly and at scale. The report calls for consolidating existing technical guidance, expanding training and developing a practical toolkit for designers, engineers and municipal decision-makers.
Such a toolkit, the authors say, should include design guidance, case studies, model specifications, and clear pathways for integrating lower-carbon concrete into public tenders and project approvals, particularly in Ontario and Alberta where infrastructure spending is significant.
Global market and policy signals suggest a rapidly changing landscape. The World Economic Forum’s 2024 Net-Zero Industry Tracker and related analysis estimate that low-emission clinker and cement still represent less than one per cent of global production, but note that investment and innovation are accelerating across the value chain.
Market research cited by financial outlets indicates that the global “green cement” market is expanding quickly, with valuations in the tens of billions of dollars and projected annual growth rates in the high single to low double digits to 2030.
For Pembina, this global context reinforces the case for coordinated Canadian action. The report argues that if Ontario and Alberta move early to harmonise standards and embed embodied-carbon targets in procurement, they can signal stable demand, support local manufacturing and ensure Canadian producers capture a larger share of the emerging low-carbon materials market.
Pembina’s report aligns its recommendations with existing federal initiatives, such as the net-zero cement and concrete roadmap and the embodied-carbon standard for federal projects.
As governments at all levels prepare for significant infrastructure spending over the next decade, the report concludes that integrating lower-carbon concrete into codes, contracts and training now could help Canada cut emissions while reinforcing the economic foundations of its construction and manufacturing sectors.
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