Embodied carbon verification
Embodied emissions
Embodied emissions are those generated by construction materials, incorporated into buildings when they’re manufactured, installed, refurbished, replaced / maintained and disposed of. These elements include:
According to the World Green Building Council, the embodied emissions from construction activities comprise about 11 per cent of the world’s total carbon emissions.
Studies show embodied carbon can account for over half of the emissions of an energy efficient building. Indeed, the UK Green Building Council has forecast that continuing operational progress means embodied carbon will form half of all built environment emissions by 2035.
These emissions cannot be reduced through operational efficiency improvements making it crucial to address at the earliest stage of design. To reduce embodied emissions, the construction industry is making use of low-carbon materials (e.g. recycled steel), employing methods to reduce the carbon intensity of construction and assets are being designed to be more durable.
Studies show embodied carbon can account for over half of the emissions of an energy efficient building. Indeed, the UK Green Building Council has forecast that continuing operational progress means embodied carbon will form half of all built environment emissions by 2035.
These emissions cannot be reduced through operational efficiency improvements making it crucial to address at the earliest stage of design. To reduce embodied emissions, the construction industry is making use of low-carbon materials (e.g. recycled steel), employing methods to reduce the carbon intensity of construction and assets are being designed to be more durable.
Your embodied footprint
Your embodied carbon footprint should reflect emissions produced during the building materials’ entire lifecycle. That cradle-to-grave approach means you should account for processes such as:
Your carbon reporting for each of these stages should also include any energy use linked to that phase.
Your embodied carbon footprint should be calculated from the earliest stages of your project planning. Knowing the impact of the materials you intend to use will help you identify elements that should be replaced with lower-carbon substitutes.
The UK Green Building Council says once the life-cycle analysis has been completed: “This information should be the subject of third-party auditing, to avoid self-made claims.”
Your embodied carbon footprint should be calculated from the earliest stages of your project planning. Knowing the impact of the materials you intend to use will help you identify elements that should be replaced with lower-carbon substitutes.
The UK Green Building Council says once the life-cycle analysis has been completed: “This information should be the subject of third-party auditing, to avoid self-made claims.”
Our process
GBTS’s typical embodied emission verifying process consists of the following stages:
Benefits
The advantages of possessing a minimised embodied carbon footprint, which has been independently verified by an expert third party like us, are numerous and varied. Click below to find out more.
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