Harnessing Carbon Removal Opportunities in Biomass Residue Building Products

The report evaluates the use of bio-based materials from agricultural and forestry residues as a mechanism for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in the building sector. Using BEAM life cycle assessment software, it estimates a cumulative global carbon removal capacity of 3.6 Gt CO2 by 2050, with an additional 16.5 Gt CO2 in avoided emissions. The analysis highlights that while non-timber biomass offers significant potential, the integration of mass timber could increase storage by fivefold. Implementation is hindered by challenges in carbon accounting, durability, and building code compliance, though emerging policies in the EU, Canada, and the US are beginning to incentivize biogenic carbon storage.

• The use of bio-based building products from biomass residues has a projected cumulative global carbon removal capacity of 3.6 Gt CO2 by 2050, with annual removal rates reaching 0.26 GtCO2 per year by that date. The average potential storage intensity across modeled building types is 60.4 kg CO2/m2.
• Substituting carbon-storing products for conventional carbon-intensive options provides a significant co-benefit in avoided emissions, estimated at 16.5 Gt CO2 by 2050 (0.64 G t CO2 per year in 2050), which is nearly 2.5 times the net carbon removal impact.
• The report's estimates are likely conservative because they only include products with available Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). Including products made from abundant feedstocks like rice hulls, corn stover, and sugar cane bagasse, or emerging materials like algae and mycelium, could double the calculated carbon removal potential.
• Replacing steel and concrete in 90% of new large buildings with mass timber and other engineered wood products could result in cumulative storage of up to 20 Gt of carbon by 2050, representing a fivefold increase over the non-timber biomass estimates in the report.
• Active forest management, including the removal of 'liability biomass' for use in long-lived building products, is presented as a way to stabilize the 860 Gt of forest carbon facing threats from climate-driven wildfires, pests, and disease.
• Several key barriers to implementation exist, including the lack of standardized carbon tracking and accounting, concerns over material durability and building code compliance, and competing demand for biomass for biofuels, electricity, and heat.
• Policy frameworks are emerging to support biogenic carbon storage, including France's RE2020 and Denmark's BR18, municipal programs in Vancouver and Toronto, and the EU's Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation.

APA

RMI (2025). Harnessing Carbon Removal Opportunities in Biomass Residue Building Products. https://rmi.org/resources/harnessing-carbon-removal-opportunities-in-biomass-residue-building-products/

Chicago

RMI. Harnessing Carbon Removal Opportunities in Biomass Residue Building Products. 2025. https://rmi.org/resources/harnessing-carbon-removal-opportunities-in-biomass-residue-building-products/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Harnessing Carbon Removal Opportunities in Biomass Residue Building Products |date=5 May 2025 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/harnessing-carbon-removal-opportunities-in-biomass-residue-building-products/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2025harnessing, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Harnessing Carbon Removal Opportunities in Biomass Residue Building Products}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2025}, month = may, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/harnessing-carbon-removal-opportunities-in-biomass-residue-building-products/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }