<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>Now that's cool! End the <a href="http://adam.shand.net/iki/library/hugh_downs_on_hemp/">Hemp conspiracy</a>! :-)</div><div><br></div><div>Adam.</div><div><br></div><div>Via: Ryan Wise (Facebook)</div><div>Source: <a href="http://www.inhabitat.com/2009/08/24/hemcrete-carbon-negative-hemp-walls-7x-stronger-than-concrete/">http://www.inhabitat.com/2009/08/24/hemcrete-carbon-negative-hemp-walls-7x-stronger-than-concrete/</a></div><div><br></div><div>August 24, 2009<div>Carbon Negative Hemp Walls are 7x Stronger than Concrete</div><div>by Daniel Flahiff</div><div><p align=""><img alt="sustainable design, green design, hemcrete, building materials, concrete, green building, architecture, carbon negative concrete, tradical" title="TradicalŽ HemcreteŽ" width="537" height="357" src="cid:1CBDC0D5-F0A6-4BDA-8D50-44F4E9564819@shand.net"></p><p align="">Buildings account for thirty-eight percent of the CO2 emissions in the U.S., according to the U.S. Green Building Council, and demand for carbon neutral and/or zero footprint buildings is at an all-time high. Now there is a new building material that is not just carbon neutral, but is actually carbon negative. Developed by U.K.-based Lhoist Group, TradicalŽ HemcreteŽ is a concrete substitute made from hemp, lime and water. What makes it carbon negative? There is more CO2 locked-up in the process of growing and harvesting of the hemp than is released in the production of the lime binder. Of course the equation is more complicated than that, but HemcreteŽ is still an amazing new technology that could change the building industry.</p><div>Good looking, environmentally friendly and 100% recyclable, HemcreteŽ is as versatile as it is sustainable. It can be used in a mind-boggling array of applications from roof insulation to wall construction to flooring. It is seven times stronger than concrete, weighs half as much, and is less prone to cracking. HemcreteŽ is also waterproof, fireproof, insulates well, does not rot and is completely recyclable. In fact, the manufacturers say that demolished HemcreteŽ walls can actually be used as fertilizer!</div><p align="">Available for years in the U.K., HemcreteŽ is only now finding its way into North America. The species of hemp used to manufacture HemcreteŽ is illegal to grow in the U.S., making HemcreteŽ an expensive option for U.S. builders for now. As pressure for more sustainable building materials grows, lawmakers are certain to revisit this and other similarly restrictive statutes, particularly if there is money to be made. And judging from the success of HemcreteŽ in Europe and elsewhere, there is plenty to be made; it is so profitable overseas that Hemp Technologies, one of the biggest manufacturers of hemp products in the UK, is actively recruiting as many new growers as it can.</p></div></div></body></html>