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Though concepts like the greenhouse effect and global warming have been debated since the 19th century, public awareness of global warming really emerged in the past four decades.

Global warming is a real and measurable phenomenon, though it may not present itself in obvious ways. It’s a global trend, not a regional one. For instance, regional weather events may become more severe without demonstrating a clear local warming trend. It’s one of many reasons why global warming and its causes continue to be a source of debate and confusion among many.

The facts, however, are beyond dispute. Atmospheric carbon levels are on the rise, increasing steeply over the past century.

Pain or payment: the economic challenge of addressing carbon emissions

Most people agree that addressing climate change and pollution is important. What people can’t agree on is how. Carbon taxes and other pricing mechanisms are deeply unpopular, even though some pricing models are proven to reduce emissions. Think of the recent protests in France after they attempted to raise their carbon tax in 2019.

Experts tell us that there are two ways forward when addressing carbon emissions: pain or payment. Solutions either cause us pain—negatively impacting our standard of living through reduced consumption—or make us pay—causing everyday goods and services to cost significantly more.

Of course, nobody wants to do either. Measures to address carbon emissions on the demand side are unpopular, contentious, and as a result slow to come online. Supply side legislation receives pushback from industry and may result in rising costs for consumers.

When it comes to solving climate change, nobody wants to be the one to pay, or to feel the pain. We’re all waiting for our neighbours to make the first move. What if there’s another way forward? We believe that trenchless technology provides a painless way to reduce the carbon footprint of one of the world’s most polluting industries.

Addressing carbon emissions in the construction industry

The building and construction sector accounts for as much as 21% of global carbon emissions. Even modest improvements in this sector can make a significant impact on the rate of climate change.

Many factors contribute to the high carbon cost of construction. Manufacture of building materials, operation of diesel-powered heavy equipment, and other energy requirements like heat and lighting for outdoor work sites all contribute. Excavation is a particularly intense source of emissions. The process itself can release otherwise sequestered greenhouse gases from the earth. Earth is heavy; moving it with heavy equipment takes a significant amount of energy in the form of diesel fuel.

Our research suggests that trenchless technology can offer carbon savings of over 90% versus conventional excavation for utility line projects. By its very nature, trenchless technology removes the most carbon intensive process from utility installation, management, and repair.

In 2017, we helped the City of New Westminster receive a carbon credit for its trenchless repair program—the first city in the world to receive a credit for such a program. We believe that broad implementation of trenchless technology can make a measurable impact on construction industry emissions while maintaining cost parity with conventional construction methods.

The carbon impact of conventional utility line management

Conventional excavation projects are carbon intensive. Let’s start by considering fuel usage. A piece of excavating equipment can burn about one hundred litres of diesel fuel in a day of continuous operation. This is equivalent to the energy used by an average household for a month. A particularly efficient electrical vehicle could drive from coast to coast across the United States using the same amount of energy.

There are many other dimensions that contribute to the carbon footprint of excavation work, from disruption of sequestered greenhouse gases in the excavated soil to the carbon costs of repairing and replacing road surfaces after the work is complete.

Trenchless technology: up to 80x less digging vs conventional excavation

Trenchless technology helps address excavation impacts by simply digging less. Consider a sewer line replacement for a 200mm pipe. A conventional approach would require digging a trench about 1m wide and 2.5m deep, running the length of the pipe to be replaced. That’s 2.5 cubic meters of earth to move per meter of pipe to be replaced.

The pipe itself has a volume of just 0.031 cubic meters, meaning that conventional excavation moves eighty units of excess material to gain access to the pipe.

A trenchless solution can sometimes avoid all excavation. In situations where an access point must be cut and excavated, trenchless technology might require digging up a single cubic meter of earth or less.

By minimizing digging, trenchless technology reduces the impact of construction work on motorists, resulting in less idling and fewer detours.

Trenchless construction carbon calculator

The reduced carbon impact of trenchless technology isn’t just a hypothetical. Though accounting for every carbon-generating factor in a construction project is difficult, our carbon emissions calculator provides a realistic model for potential greenhouse gas reduction by choosing trenchless technology. You can download the calculator in Excel format here.

Emissions reduction without compromise is possible with trenchless technology

In many cases, trenchless solutions compete on cost and timeline versus conventional construction. At the same time, trenchless technology offers a low-carbon option for utility management. It’s less disruptive to commuters and communities. It’s quieter and safer.

Where most potential solutions to climate change come with a hefty cost, adoption of trenchless technology doesn’t. We hope that as more and more communities become aware of the myriad benefits of going trenchless, we can be an integral part of the climate solution.