Low carbon concrete compliance

Projects pouring concrete in unincorporated Marin must submit forms at two points in the permit process:

• At permit application (plan review), and
• Before final inspection

Follow the instructions below, based on what stage you're at in the permitting process.

When you apply for a building permit, the County reviews how your project plans to comply with the low carbon concrete requirement. 

At this stage, you must submit a design compliance form that shows that compliant concrete mixes will be used on your project. 

Choose one of these compliance pathways:

Cement Limit Pathway (simplest option)

This is the most common and straightforward option for typical residential and commercial projects.

Use this pathway if:

• Your project will comply by limiting cement content in concrete mixes, and
• You plan to use mixes from the County’s prequalified low carbon concrete list or equivalent compliant mixes.

Download the Design Professional Cement Limit Pathway form

Embodied Carbon Pathway (for large projects)

Use this pathway if your project will demonstrate compliance using the global warming potential (GWP) of concrete mixes, supported by Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs).

This option is typically used for:

• Larger or more complex projects, or
• Projects specifying a custom mix

Download the Design Professional Embodied Carbon Pathway form

Before final inspection, the County verifies what concrete was actually used on the project. 

The contractor is responsible for submitting a compliance form to the inspector within six weeks of the concrete pour. The form must be accompanied by batch receipts from the ready-mix supplier.

Use the same compliance pathway that you used during plan review:

Cement limit pathway (simplest option)

• Attach batch receipts for all pours.
• Include cement content information for each mix (unless using a prequalified mix design).

Download the Contractor Cement Limit Pathway form

Embodied Carbon Pathway (for large projects)

• Attach batch receipts for all pours.
• Include Enviromental Product Declarations (EPDs) for each mix used.

Download the Contractor Embodied Carbon Pathway form

If you have any questions about Marin County's Low Carbon Concrete policy, email us or give us a call.

Project managers specifying design standards can find sample specifications below:

• Residential project specifications
• Nonresidential project specifications

For more resources on how to specify low carbon concrete, check out StopWaste's Low Carbon Concrete Amendment Toolkit.