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Crews pour concrete on a bridge over Interstate 69 in southern Indiana, circa 2002.<\/span>(Indiana Department of Transportation)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n This story was reported by<\/em>\u00a0Floodlight,<\/a> a nonprofit newsroom that investigates the powerful interests stalling climate action.<\/em><\/p>\n Concrete built much <\/span>of the modern world. It paves highways, shelters millions, and forms the foundations of countless buildings.\u00a0<\/p>\n But cement, the crucial powder that serves as the binder in concrete, has become one of the planet\u2019s biggest climate threats, generating about 8 percent of the world\u2019s carbon dioxide emissions.\u00a0And now, efforts to curb its pollution are facing new political headwinds.<\/p>\n Moves to decarbonize the cement industry picked up speed during the administration of President Joe Biden, which channeled billions of dollars in Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) money toward reducing the carbon footprint of concrete and other construction materials.<\/p>\n The Trump administration has reversed course. In January, the Environmental Protection Agency canceled 21 grants aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from concrete, cement and other construction materials, according to a spreadsheet compiled by the Sierra Club from EPA records.\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s definitely concern that the momentum is broken,\u201d said Yong Kwon, senior campaign advisor for Sierra Club\u2019s Industrial Transformation Campaign.<\/p>\n The EPA didn\u2019t respond to Floodlight<\/em>\u2019s questions about why it canceled those grants. Instead the agency\u2019s press office sent a two-sentence response:<\/p>\n \u201cAs with any change in Administration, the agency is reviewing each grant program to ensure it is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars and to understand how those programs align with Administration priorities. The agency determined that the grant application no longer supports Administration priorities, and the awards have been cancelled.\u201d<\/p>\n Prized for its<\/span> strength, durability and versatility, concrete is the second-most used substance<\/a> on Earth, behind only water.<\/p>\n But the explosive growth in its use has also heightened concerns about a warming planet. Carbon dioxide emissions from cement production have nearly tripled over the past 30 years. If the cement industry were a country, it would be the world\u2019s fifth largest carbon polluter. Global demand is expected to soar by 50 percent by 2050.<\/p>\n