Blue Carbon Steel™
Capturing Carbon from Fabrication
Blue carbon is the carbon that coastal and marine ecosystems pull from the air and lock away. Blue Carbon Steel™ is American Katerra’s concept for applying that same principle to steel: capturing and reducing the CO2 that fabrication produces, rather than only cutting it at the source. It is the companion to Green Carbon Steel™, and an emerging, forward-looking part of our sustainability approach.
What “blue carbon” means
Blue carbon refers to CO2 captured and stored by marine ecosystems such as seaweed, seagrass, mangroves, and salt marshes. These systems act as natural carbon sinks, which makes them a powerful, and renewable, tool against climate change.
What Blue Carbon Steel™ aims to do
Blue Carbon Steel™ applies that idea to fabrication. The concept is to capture and reduce the CO2 generated when steel is made, for example by cultivating blue carbon ecosystems such as seagrass or algae near a fabrication plant to absorb the emissions it produces.
The thinking behind it
Lower net emissions
Absorbing and offsetting CO2 from fabrication to reduce its footprint against traditional steelmaking.
Renewable resources
Using blue carbon biomass, such as seaweed and seagrass, as a renewable input rather than fossil energy.
Shared value
Opening potential in carbon markets while supporting coastal biodiversity and local economies.
Green and Blue, together
Our approach pairs two ideas. Green Carbon Steel™ lowers carbon across the supply chain; Blue Carbon Steel™ looks at capturing and offsetting what remains. Together they form our Green & Blue Carbon Steel™ approach.
Measured and disclosed
Any offset or reduction only counts if it is measured. We quantify carbon through life cycle assessment, so a claim is backed by data rather than intent.
Blue Carbon Steel™ FAQs
Is Blue Carbon Steel™ a product?
No. Blue Carbon Steel™ is an emerging concept: capturing and reducing the CO2 that steel fabrication produces. The product you can specify today is Green Steel, our lower-carbon structural steel.
What does blue carbon have to do with steel?
Blue carbon is the CO2 that coastal ecosystems capture and store. Blue Carbon Steel™ borrows that principle for steel decarbonization: absorb and offset the emissions that remain after reduction, through carbon capture ideas such as cultivating blue carbon ecosystems.
Is Blue Carbon Steel™ related to blue carbon steel cookware?
No. Blue carbon steel pans are cookware. Blue Carbon Steel™ is American Katerra’s sustainability concept for structural steel fabrication in the United States.
Inquiries About Blue Carbon Steel™
Have questions about Blue Carbon Steel™? It is an emerging concept, and we are glad to explain where it stands and how it pairs with Green Steel on real projects. Talk to our team.