*A hempcrete chapel, built in 2008 on a private estate outside Houston, will be the site of one of three Hemp Build Texas Tour workshops in November. Photo courtesy of Hemp Build Network*

SPONSORED CONTENT By HempBuildMag Magazine

Some of the earliest-built hemp structures in Texas will be featured in a series of three hemp-building workshops in mid-Texas in November.

The Hemp Build Texas Tour will include three all-day teaching sessions on building with industrial hemp in Houston, Greater San Marcos and San Antonio. The events are co-sponsored by the Hemp Build Network, LLC and HempBuildMag.com.

The Houston event Thursday, Nov. 4 takes place on the private estate of hemp building pioneer Gail Moran, who built a beautiful southwestern Spanish-style chapel and outbuildings on her Montgomery County estate with industrial hemp and lime in 2008.

“Our hands-on workshops are introducing Texans to the potential of industrial hemp building materials,” said Hemp Build Network CEO Ray Kaderli.

Workshops are also planned for Saturday, Nov. 6 in New Braunfels (south of San Marcos) and Saturday, Nov. 13 in San Antonio.

The workshops will also feature a demonstration of an industrial hemp-spray application, the ER-Easy, a time-saving insulation method that hemp advocates hope will help advance hemp building materials into the construction industry.

*Participants in the Texas Hemp Building Tour can work with hemp building materials in person. Photo courtesy of Hemp Build Network*

Hemp Build Network, a hemp building solutions company based in New Braunfels, TX, will also welcome local elected officials, civil engineers and county extension staffers to workshops to witness the potential of green construction jobs of the future, Kaderli said.

*An industrial spray applicator, the ER-Easy, is used to install hemp insulation quickly. Photo courtesy Hemp Build Network*

Hemp construction materials

Hempcrete, a mixture of powdered lime binder, chopped up hemp bark (hurd) and water, has been used in Europe for 30 years to build multistory hemp buildings, department stores and hemp homes.

But one of the most important benefits of industrial hemp is as a secret weapon in the race to sequester carbon. The construction industry generates about 40% of the total greenhouse gasses in the Earth’s atmosphere.Hemp absorbs up to 5 tons of carbon dioxide per acre while photosynthesizing. That carbon is locked in the walls of a hempcrete house.

In 2022, Hemp Build Network is building a demonstration home in San Antonio using spray-applied hemp insulation, Hemp Build Network’s Kaderli said.

Now that industrial hemp has been legalized in the United States after the 2018 Farm Bill and plenty of Texas farmers are growing it, “it’s time for people to really understand how carbon-sequestering hemp can provide a green insulation option that can create green construction jobs and make beautiful long-lasting buildings,” Kaderli added.