Pittsburgh, 23 September – The United States has joined the Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI) – an international coalition of public and private organizations that are working to decarbonize heavy industries, starting with the steel, cement and concrete sectors.

“To fight climate change we must decarbonize the most energy intensive industrial sectors and create demand for low-carbon materials,” said US Secretary of Energy, Jennifer M. Granholm. “To support these efforts, we are joining the Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative and its important work on data, standards, and procurement alongside other governments and the private sector.”

Globally, industry contributes an estimated 24% of annual greenhouse gas emissions. Steel and cement (also used to make concrete) account for more than half of these industrial emissions. In particular, the IDDI aims to stimulate demand for lower carbon versions of these common construction materials through greener public procurement.

The US Secretary of Energy announced joining the IDDI at the Global Clean Energy Action Forum in Pittsburgh, as did Saudi Arabia. Other member governments of the coalition – which is an initiative of the Clean Energy Ministerial, and is coordinated by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) – include Canada, Germany, India, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.