Carbon Sequestration through Application of Industrial Bamboo Materials

Abstract

This study assesses the carbon sequestration potential through the increased use of industrial bamboo materials in the Western building industry, to better understand how engineered bamboo compares with commonly used building materials such as tropical hardwood. The first objective of this study is to measure the environmental impact of industrial bamboo products and its production process in terms of their CO2 equivalent (carbon footprint). The second objective of this paper is to clarify how carbon sequestration on a global scale, including in bamboo forests and plantations, can be defined and calculated for industrial bamboo products, and how they can be incorporated in the standard carbon footprint calculations. The study concludes that industrial bamboo products, if based on best-practice technology (production chain of MOSO International BV), even when used in Europe, can be CO2 negative over their full life cycle.