Study Finds Green Clay Tennis Courts Cut Construction Emissions Up to 70% and Remove 40,000 Tons of CO₂ Yearly

Green clay tennis courts significantly cut construction carbon emissions by up to 70% and remove 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually, according to new research.

New research details how green clay tennis courts offer a measurable environmental benefit beyond their play surface. A study published in *Applied Geochemistry* by Frankie Pavia and Jonathan Lambert from Columbia University models the carbon footprint of different court surfaces. It reveals how green clay courts, common in the U.S., actively perform "enhanced rock weathering." This process describes how specialized rocks naturally draw carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by reacting with water and air, converting the carbon into a dissolved salt. Researchers accounted for material transportation, construction, and ongoing maintenance to quantify these environmental impacts.

Green clay tennis courts generate 1.6 to 3 times less carbon emissions during their construction compared to traditional hard courts. This translates to an emissions reduction of up to 70% for new court builds. Beyond construction, these courts are estimated to remove approximately 40,000 tons of CO₂ from the atmosphere each year. This figure, while significant for a specific type of infrastructure, represents a small fraction of the over 38 billion tons of CO₂ globally emitted in 2025. Jonathan Lambert noted that if fully scaled, enhanced rock weathering, the process underlying the clay's carbon removal, could potentially offset up to five percent of all human-caused carbon emissions.

The study highlights that material choices in everyday infrastructure can contribute to climate mitigation. Utilizing surfaces that actively remove carbon dioxide offers a dual environmental advantage: lower emissions from creation and ongoing carbon sequestration. These findings suggest an unexpected avenue for carbon removal, integrating it into existing recreational infrastructure. Moving forward, researchers will likely explore broader applications of enhanced rock weathering in other widespread surfaces and materials to amplify global climate efforts.