The environmental consultancy Carbon Sense Solutions has invented a method of storing carbon dioxide waste in concrete.

Concrete and cement production is responsible for 5 per cent of the world's man-made carbon dioxide emissions; the process of baking limestone and clay to create cement relies heavily on fossil fuels, as does the curing process in which cement is mixed with gravel, water and sand.

Carbon Sense Solutions believes that exposing the cement to flue gases with a high carbon dioxide content at the curing stage allows it to absorb the gas. This process, called concrete carbonation, occurs naturally but would be sped up to absorb large quantities of gas at high speed. The Canadian consultancy claims that 60 tonnes of carbon dioxide could be stored in 1,000 tonnes of concrete. In answer to critics who say that injecting liquid carbon dioxide into concrete has been rejected in the past because it requires too much energy, Carbon Sense Solutions says that it can now achieve the same results without the need for intense pressure, reducing the energy consumption.

A pilot scheme has just been launched to test the feasibility of the new technology. It could reduce carbon emissions by 1 per cent, not insignificant when considered on a global scale.

With 240,000 new homes scheduled to be built in Britain every year until 2016, the introduction of a concrete that hoovers up CO2 could help the Government meet its carbon reduction target for 2050.

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