Embodied carbon refers to the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of building materials. When a building owner or tenant purchases materials to construct a space, these emissions become part of their carbon footprint. Upfront or “cradle-to-gate” GHGs are released during extraction and manufacturing.
Introduction
Embodied carbon emissions are released into the atmosphere before a building is constructed, so the only opportunity to reduce emissions is when the materials are selected or purchased. Unlike operational energy, embodied carbon can’t be reduced over time through retrofits and clean grids; embodied carbon must be addressed immediately before building and tenant space fit-out construction begins. Learn more about the urgency of embodied carbon here.
Corporate policies of investors, developers, and public or private building owners and tenants play an important role in reducing embodied carbon because they impact the entire building value chain. This is important for two reasons:
- Increased opportunities, reduced cost: Project-level opportunities to reduce embodied carbon increase in difficulty as a project develops. Prioritizing carbon early in a project reduces cost and increases the range of strategies available for reducing carbon (see Figure 1).
- Market signaling: When owners or investors establish embodied carbon policies, they send a demand signal across their value chain that encourages confidence in clean manufacturing and other investments.
This document provides an overview of the opportunity for investors, developers, building owners and tenants to reduce embodied carbon by developing company-wide policies and practices, and provides three paths to getting started.
