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Development Permits: Climate Action Plan
Low-Carbon Concrete Building Code
In support of Climate Action Plan 2030 and Beyond, the City Council adopted a low-carbon concrete building code at the meeting on September 17, 2024. The low-carbon concrete building code is intended to reduce the embodied greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with concrete, which is responsible for approximately 8% of global GHG emissions. Implementation of the new building code will begin January 1, 2025. All projects that require a building permit and that use ready-mix concrete must comply with the low carbon concrete building code.
The low carbon concrete building code establishes cement and embodied carbon limits for concrete mixes at specified compressive strengths. Compliance is achieved by demonstrating that a concrete mix meets the cement limit OR the embodied carbon limit by providing a concrete mix design that lists the amount of cement, or by providing an environmental product declaration (EPD) that lists the embodied carbon content in the mix. The cement and embodied carbon limits are shown in the table below.
Dublin Municipal Code Chapter 7.94, Green Building, Table 4.420.3: Cement and Embodied Carbon Limit Pathways
| Cement Limits | Embodied Carbon Limits | |
| Minimum specified compressive strength( f'c), psi | Maximum ordinary Portland cement content, lbs./yd.3 | Maximum embodied carbon kg. CO2e/m3, per Environmental Product Declaration |
| up to 2,500 | 362 | 260 |
| 2,501 - 3,000 | 410 | 289 |
| 3,001 - 4,000 | 456 | 313 |
| 4,001 - 5,000 | 503 | 338 |
| 5,001 - 6,000 | 531 | 356 |
| 6,001 - 7,000 | 594 | 394 |
| Greater than 7,000 | 657 | 433 |
| Up to 3,000 light-weight | 512 | 578 |
| Up to 4,000 light-weight | 571 | 626 |
| 4,001 - 5,000 light-weight | 629 | 675 |
There are certain allowable increases and exemptions in the building code. Find out more about the low carbon concrete building code by watching the video below or reading the fact sheets that are available in the forms and resources section of this page. The low concrete compliance calculator is also available in the forms and resources section. This spreadsheet calculator was developed to help demonstrate compliance with the code.
