Green Shield

Green Shield is committed to protecting America’s natural landscapes and historical landmarks through sustainable fire suppression. I aim to replace toxic, carcinogenic PFAS foams with our biodegradable, seaweed-based hydrogel. This bio-polymer barrier halts the progress of fire without damaging delicate architecture or contaminating ecosystems. Green Shield’s mission is to equip frontline responders with a portable, one-bag mixable solution that ensures our nation’s heritage and our future environment remain both unburned and unpolluted. By bridging the gap between material science and fire safety, Green Shield preserves the physical foundation of the American story for the next 250 years.

​The Crisis: A Toxic Legacy For decades, high-intensity fire suppression has relied on Aqueous Film Forming Foams. While effective at smothering flames, these foams contain PFAS: forever chemicals now linked to severe health risks, including cancer, for the firefighters who handle them. As federal and state bans on these substances accelerate, a critical gap has emerged in the wildland-urban interface. In these high-stakes zones, water alone is often insufficient. It evaporates too quickly to prevent rekindling or to protect wooden structures sitting in the direct path of an advancing wildfire. We are currently forced to choose between losing a structure to fire, poisoning the groundwater, or the firefighters who deploy it with chemicals. ​The Historical Gap While wildfires threaten our natural resources, a secondary crisis exists in historical preservation. America’s landmark structures are often built with aged, highly flammable wood and porous materials, making them uniquely vulnerable. Traditional fire foams are often corrosive or chemically reactive; they can cause irreparable staining and structural decay to the very architecture they are meant to save. Presently, there is no widely available solution that offers a high-performance thermal barrier without leaving a permanent, damaging chemical footprint on our history. ​The Green Shield Solution: Technical Proof Green Shield addresses these challenges through an innovative one-bag dry concentrate using a seaweed-derived polymer. When mixed with water, this hydrogel creates a non-toxic thermal shell that adheres to both horizontal and vertical surfaces, effectively "shielding" a building. ​During my initial testing, I saw a measurable improvement over existing methods: ​Active Suppression: In wet state tests, treated wood withstood 40 seconds of direct blowtorch exposure at a distance of less than one inch. The result was zero charring, and the wood remained cool to the touch after the flame was removed. ​Pre-Treatment Efficacy: In dry state testing, the gel cured into a sacrificial barrier that remained effective for over two hours. The treated wood also withstood 40 seconds of direct flame exposure at less than one inch. This resulted in little to no charring of the wood under the gel barrier, which can be easily washed away with no environmental harm. This allows homeowners or rangers to treat a surface well before a fire arrives, providing a shield that outperforms bare wood. ​Logistical Superiority: Unlike heavy liquid fire suppressants, my dry-mix formula drastically reduces the weight and carbon footprint of the supply chain. This allows for rapid deployment via backpack or light vehicle in remote wildland areas or cramped, urban historic districts. ​Alignment with America’s Future By combining the field-tested insights of wildland firefighting with material science, Green Shield represents the best of American ingenuity. We are not just stopping flames; we are protecting the health of our first responders and the integrity of our historical identity. We must ensure that we do not lose the architectural and environmental foundations of the last 250. Green Shield provides the protection necessary to keep our history standing and our ecosystems thriving.