The leading voice for the crushed stone, ready mixed concrete, sand and gravel, and cement industries' community.
PELA is a 10-month hybrid program with online and in-person educational sessions and networking opportunities.
Careers in the Aggregates, Concrete & Cement Industries
The Pennsylvania Aggregates and Concrete Association (PACA) is the industry’s unified voice, representing more than 200 member companies across the state.
Creating a unified and strong voice for our industry.
PACA monitors and analyzes local, state and federal regulations and advocates for a balanced approach by the regulators.
PACA builds a bridge between our members and our partners at PennDOT, and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission along with Pennsylvania’s construction industry to further the use of our materials to the benefit of the commonwealth.
One of the most effective tools in government relations for an industry is a robust advocacy/grassroots strategy.
In the last legislative session, we contributed over $275,000 to our political champions.
November 2025 at Hotel Hershey in Hershey, PA (PACA members only event).
PACA offers comprehensive concrete certification programs for ACI, NRMCA, and PennDOT in the central Pennsylvania area.
Membership has its privileges - most of PACA's events are open to PACA members only.
PACA conducts numerous education and training events during the year.
Choose concrete for your next parking lot project.
Streets built with concrete are built to last, consider concrete for your next project.
Concrete's strong, resilient and the choice for your next building or bridge.
PACA works with the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA) to convert your parking lot or building project to concrete without hurting your bottom line.
PACA drives a member-approved strategic plan to increase market share and engages specifiers and owners on the value of concrete in their projects.
This program provides free continuing education to the design and specifying communities. There are currently four courses available, ranging from 30 minutes to 60 minutes focused on the cement, aggregates and concrete industries. You'll receive a certificate of completion once you pass a quiz. The bookmarking feature allows you to leave the course and resume where you left off when you return.
All over the world, governments, industries and corporations look to 2050 as the year to achieve carbon neutrality.
More specifically, carbon neutrality is top-of-mind for many in the construction industry. And that’s good, since, according to the World Economic Forum, it accounts for 38% of global emissions. Worldwide, construction companies create another Paris every week.
The concrete industry has already seen prodigious gains in emissions efficiency. Much more needs must be done. A key goal is carbon neutrality. Consider the Portland Cement Association’s Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality, for example. The Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) represents about 40% of the industry worldwide. Its members also commit to achieving carbon neutral concrete by 2050.
California is more aggressive, seeking carbon neutrality by 2045. As Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) notes, “California executive order B-55-18 mandates that the state achieve carbon neutrality by 2045 and maintain net negative emissions thereafter.”
This is significant considering the size of California’s economy. A $3.4 trillion GDP gives it an economy larger than all but five nations.. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) estimates 2021 U.S. GDP at $22.99 trillion. California accounts for 14.8% of the total. Therefore, that state’s quest for net negative emissions sets an important benchmark.
Is the large-scale deployment of carbon-negative concrete eventually possible? While some answer in the affirmative, the question of scalability remains.
LLNL asserts that a “portfolio of approaches” could deliver negative emissions in California by 2045. These include:
Carbon capture from waste biomass utilization
Using natural and working lands as carbon sinks
Direct air capture of CO2
Waste biomass is getting unprecedented attention as a fuel source for cement kilns. For example, in Mexico, Cemex is co-processing municipal waste for this purpose. One study recommended conversion of grassland to farmland, reforestation, and planting cover crops. This “could mitigate as much as one-fifth of the net annual greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.”
Direct air capture also captures the imagination. It’s a straightforward way to deal with excess CO2 in the atmosphere. Doing this at scale is not so simple, however. Widespread carbon-negative concrete demands significant investment by public and private entities alike.
However, the exploitation of proven technologies and phenomena will better define the journey to carbon-neutral and eventually, carbon-negative concrete.
Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) is a key component of the quest for carbon-negative concrete. Carbon-infused concrete and calcium carbonate cement benefit from, and permanently sequester, carbon dioxide.
Scientific American says Calera’s concrete sequesters a half-ton of CO2 for every ton of cement. It bubbles flue gas through sea water to make cement with attractive characteristics. Calera’s process mimics binders forming coral in the ocean. Ordinarily, waste heat from flue gasses emanating goes into the atmosphere. Spray dryers use the heat to dry the slurry. The chalk-like product makes the cement snow white.
There's one important fact about CO2 and concrete. CO2-infused concrete is stronger than that made with ordinary Portland cement (OPC). Also, it cures in 24 hours rather than 28 days.
Quebec-based Carbicrete has a patented process for injecting CO2 into an absorption chamber. At present, the company produces carbon-negative, cement-free blocks. During the curing process, CO2 is permanently sequestered in stable calcium carbonates. They fill voids in the concrete to increase its strength. Carbonation during curing accelerates early strength. Carbicrete’s product also demonstrates enhanced freeze-thaw resistance and compressive strength.
Carbicrete’s formulation uses byproducts of steel production rather than Portland cement. Steel slag is the sole binder, while last furnace slag is a lightweight aggregate. The process consumes zero natural resources and produces zero waste. A third party, the Carbon Consult Group, verified its carbon-negative performance.
In 2021, Carbon Cure was one of the two co-winners in the XPRIZE competition. With the CarbonCure process, injected CO2 mineralizes in the concrete mix. This adds strength while permanently sequestering the CO2. It is possible for concrete producers to retrofit their existing plants to accommodate the technology.
As National Geographic highlights, forests are carbon sinks. Exposed concrete is also a carbon sink. Decades of concrete construction mean massive amounts of exposed concrete. It continues to absorb CO2 via carbonation. The cumulative effect is significant. According to one estimate, concrete sequestered 4.5 billion tons from 1930 to. 2013. This offset roughly 43% of the cement industry’s carbon emissions.
The first two decades of the new millennia have seen the discovery of revolutionary new materials. Graphene and borophene are two examples. Graphene is already used to strengthen concrete. What new materials will arrive during the next two decades? The industry can't pin its hopes on emergent or currently non-existent materials. However, it is realistic to hope for periodic revolutions amid an ongoing evolution of carbon reduction.
The oceans’ massive coral reefs inspire those seeking building blocks for tomorrow's construction. For example, calcium and magnesium in seawater form carbonates. Better yet, they do this at ambient temperatures and regular pressures. Limestone from organic renewable sources is another possibility.
At the Pennsylvania Aggregates and Concrete Association (PACA), we work to bring you the latest news impacting the industry. Topics range from innovation to sustainability, and from public policy to legislative initiatives.
Should you have questions about your upcoming concrete project, feel free to contact us.
February 22, 2024
Proficient carbon calculations are increasingly important as “Buy Clean” legislation proliferates. New York and Colorado are among the states that now require carbon calcs for public projects. An estimated 40% of emissions are from the built environment. According to one estimate, the planet’s total building floor area will double by 2060. This makes the concrete industry a key player in the quest for net-zero emissions products and projects.
February 15, 2024
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) notes that cement production is “so carbon intensive that even though cement makes up less than 15% of concrete by weight, it accounts for 90% of concrete’s carbon footprint.” The use of fossil fuels to fire cement kilns is a key source of these carbon emissions.
February 08, 2024
In the quest for reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, everyone has a role to play. In the concrete industry, this includes everyone from manufacturers to contractors, and from trade associations to governments. Here is a review of some of the major initiatives impacting concrete’s sustainability.
February 01, 2024
Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) requires high-temperature calcination of limestone. It is possible to use various emissions-reducing pozzolans in concrete. Fly ash comes from coal-fired power plants. Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) comes from steel mills. Another SCM is metakaolin derived from kaolin.
The program is delivered in one (1) module and it should take approximately 30 minutes to complete. You will receive a certificate of completion once you pass the quiz. The bookmarking feature will allow you to leave the course and resume where you left off when you return.