Reducing Embodied Carbon in the Built Environment: A Research Agenda

Pomponi, Francesco; Moncaster, Alice

Abstract

In spite of significant global efforts, the International Energy Agency suggests that buildings-related emissions are on track to double by 2050. Whilst operational energy efficiency continues to receive significant attention by researchers, a less well researched area is the assessment of embodied carbon in the built environment in order to understand where the greatest opportunities for its mitigation and reduction lie. This paper reports on available mitigation strategies to tackle embodied carbon identified through a systematic review of the available academic evidence. It also investigates the scope and scale of current academic investigations to highlight where significant gaps are for impactful further research on the topic. In total, 17 mitigation strategies have been identified from within the existing literature which have been discussed individually. Results reveal that a one-size-fits-all approach is unlikely to yield beneficial results and future research should be diverse in breadth and scope, locally accurate, and significantly interdisciplinary.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (Published)
• Conference Name: SEEDS 2016 ((Sustainable, Ecological, Engineering and Design for Society)
• Start Date: Sep 14, 2016
• End Date: Sep 16, 2016
• Acceptance Date: Sep 13, 2016
• Publication Date: Sep 14, 2016
• Deposit Date: Feb 17, 2017
• ISBN: 978-0-9955690-1-0
• Keywords: embodied carbon mitigation, embodied carbon reduction, whole life carbon, low carbon built environment
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/686533