Q4 2023: Environmental Updates

Most of the carbon emissions associated with buildings are already in the atmosphere at day one, before the building even begins to operate. That’s because the building materials embody carbon; concrete, steel, glass, and asphalt are just a few. This is driving the need for greener materials to help generate “big change” in how the architecture-engineering-construction industry operates. [8]

Over the past few years, Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculators have been created in hopes to provide an open-source tool to democratize data and provide transparency as companies and governments aim to achieve their carbon reduction goals.

Sustainable choices pay off in the long term but can sometimes add costs to projects up front. Often these higher costs can be justified when they result in better performing buildings. It’s all part of the evolution of a better design-build approach, one that reduces embodied carbon by integrating technology that optimizes energy through better performance within the building’s systems. [8]

[8] Adolphus, E. D., & Keller, J. (2023, September 13). ENR 2023 top 100 green design firms and contractors: A green market growth spurt. Engineering NewsRecord RSS. https://www.enr.com/articles/57098-enr-2023-top-100-green-design-firms-and-contractors-a-green-market-growth-spurt