BBC NEWS | UK | Wales | Mid Wales | Hemp concrete in £6.2m eco-centre
Environmentally-friendly concrete made from a variety of the cannabis plant is being used on a new £6.2m project at an eco-centre in Powys.
Made from hemp and called hemcrete, the mixture is being applied to walls at the Centre for Alternative Technology (Cat), near Machynlleth.
A lot of energy is used to make the common form of concrete in comparison to its “greener” cousin, said Cat.
Hemp is legal and part of the cannabis species, which includes marijuana.
It is identical in appearance to the illegal drug, but it lacks the narcotic qualities.
Hemp is grown in the UK and is recognised to be a versatile crop and is used to make many retail products.
Hemcrete, made from hemp stalks, lime and a small quantity of cement, produces less carbon emissions than conventional concrete, said Cat.
The product is being sprayed onto heraklith (woodwool) boards at Cat’s new Wales Institute for Sustainable Education (Wise).
The £6.2m training and conference venue will extend the eco-centre’s courses in subjects such as sustainable architecture and solar power for electricians.
Meanwhile, the United States still bans the cultivation of hemp to be made into such environmentally-friendly products because you can’t smoke hemp, but it looks like something you could smoke, so we just can’t be too careful.
