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Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States

Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States, a collaboration between the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF), RMI, and the University of Washington (UW) Life Cycle Lab, provides an assessment of embodied carbon from US construction materials and explores pathways to align with a 1.5°C global warming limit.

À propos

Embodied carbon ‒ the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions generated by the manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of construction materials used in buildings, roads, and other infrastructure ‒ is a critical and often overlooked solution for addressing climate change. 

The United States needs a 50% reduction by 2030 to align with a 1.5°C goal (Rhodium Group, 2023) and is not on track to meet this target. Rapid decarbonization of the US industrial and building sectors through energy efficiency, electrification, low-carbon material use, and material-efficient design is crucial to closing the emissions gap and preserving a livable climate. With limited time to act to avoid the worst consequences of climate change and increasing federal headwinds, focusing efforts on the highest potential strategies and associated policies is critical.

This research begins by establishing a “business-as-usual” (BAU) trajectory for 30 key construction materials through 2050 and evaluates how far this baseline deviates from science-based targets. The analysis in this report focuses on the emissions from the raw material supply and extraction, transportation, and manufacturing of construction materials (A1-A3) used in the construction of new buildings and infrastructure in the United States. For buildings, the analysis focuses on structure, foundations, enclosure, and some interiors, and non-building infrastructure focuses on asphalt, concrete, sand and gravel, and steel.

Six modeled pathways evaluate the potential of strategies and policies to close the gap between BAU and 1.5°C-aligned trajectories. Only the “Best Case” scenario— combining aggressive adoption of all best practices and rapid development and deployment of emerging technologies—approaches the necessary reductions by 2050. Scenarios focused on design innovation and energy strategies also showed substantial promise.

This report serves as a call to action, urging the industrial and construction sectors to continue progress towards global targets. The embodied carbon of key construction materials used in buildings and infrastructure in the United States is significant and requires deployment of a large range of strategies. While challenges remain, existing technologies and strategies can deliver meaningful reductions in the near term. Success will depend on rapid policy action, cross-sector collaboration, and sustained investment in both proven and emerging solutions.

Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States

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Remerciements

The research team would like to thank the Breakthrough Energy Foundation and the ClimateWorks Foundation for supporting this research. Additionally, we would like to thank additional staff from the Carbon Leadership Forum, RMI, and the UW Life Cycle Lab that engaged with this project during its initiation, helped develop background research for its execution, and/or provided technical review: Anthony Hickling, Brook Waldman, Stephanie Carlisle, Victor Olgyay, and Kate Simonen. Sindhu Raju, CLF Program Assistant, supported the publication production and data visualization. Jack Rusk (C-Scale) also provided valuable feedback on the modeling framework early in the project.

À propos du Carbon Leadership Forum

The Carbon Leadership Forum is a nonprofit dedicated to accelerating the transformation of the building sector to radically reduce the greenhouse gas emissions attributed to materials (also known as embodied carbon) used in buildings and infrastructure. We research, educate, and foster cross-collaboration to bring the embodied carbon of buildings and infrastructure down to zero.

About the University of Washington (UW) Life Cycle Lab

The Life Cycle Lab at UW’s College of Built Environments leads research to advance life cycle assessment (LCA) data, methods, and approaches to enable the optimization of materials, buildings, and infrastructure. Our work is structured to inform impactful policies and practices that support global decarbonization efforts. We envision a transformed, decarbonized building industry – better buildings for a better planet.

À propos de RMI

RMI (founded as Rocky Mountain Institute) is an independent, nonpartisan nonprofit founded in 1982 that transforms global energy systems through market-driven solutions to secure a prosperous, resilient, clean energy future for all. In collaboration with businesses, policymakers, funders, communities, and other partners, RMI drives investment to scale clean energy solutions, reduce energy waste, and boost access to affordable clean energy in ways that enhance security, strengthen the economy, and improve people’s livelihoods. RMI is active in over 60 countries.

droits d'auteur

Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Cover image by Alex Moliski from Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/photo/scenic-path-in-mount-rainier-national-park-28954737/

Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States
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Auteurs

This project is a collaborative, multi-organization effort led by the following individuals:

  • Milad Ashtiani, University of Washington Life Cycle Lab
  • Meghan Lewis, Carbon Leadership Forum
  • Rachelle Habchi, Carbon Leadership Forum
  • Aurora Jensen, Carbon Leadership Forum
  • Matt Jungclaus, Building Insights LLC
  • Audrey Rempher, RMI
  • Rebecca Esau, RMI

Citation

Ashtiani, M., Jungclaus, M., Habchi, R., Jensen, A., Rempher, A., Esau, R., and Lewis, M. (2025). Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States. Carbon Leadership Forum. Seattle, WA. URL

Bibliothèque de ressources

Reclaimed and Reused: Recommended LCA Modeling Guidance to Support EPDs for Reused Construction Materials

Material reuse is one strategy for reducing the embodied carbon of construction. While the preparation of previously used materials for reuse has an environmental impact, it avoids many of the resource extraction and manufacturing impacts of building with newly manufactured products. Given the amount of demolition and deconstruction across North America (and beyond), there is a vast potential for material reuse to expand in scale. However, barriers to material reuse scaling exist.

DEQ Low Embodied Carbon Housing Program: Roadmap to Success

Embodied Carbon Pathways to 2050 for the United States, a collaboration between the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF), RMI, and the University of Washington (UW) Life Cycle Lab, provides an assessment of embodied carbon from US construction materials and explores pathways to align with a 1.5°C global warming limit.

International Embodied Carbon Data Availability: A Review of Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) Availability in Europe, China, and Australia

CLF completed a landscape analysis of product-level embodied carbon data availability in regions outside North America with the goals of: (i) understanding how LCA/EPD data availability varies globally; (ii) informing where targeted initiatives are needed to increase the availability of data; and (iii) determining whether adequate EPD data exists to develop CLF Material Baselines outside North America. This report summarizes our findings and provides initial insights into what data is available to inform low-carbon procurement efforts in Australia, China, and Europe.

The CLF Benchmark Explorer

Emissions from the operations of buildings and infrastructure are significant, well-understood contributors to national and global greenhouse gas emissions. However, the contribution of embodied carbon—emissions associated with the manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of construction materials across the life cycle of a building or asset—is neglected by comparison. Even at the global level, embodied carbon estimates are typically based on manufacturing emissions from the production of a handful of the highest-impact materials (e.g. concrete, steel, aluminum, and wood).

Washington State Carbon Emissions Estimation: 2025 – 2050

Emissions from the operations of buildings and infrastructure are significant, well-understood contributors to national and global greenhouse gas emissions. However, the contribution of embodied carbon—emissions associated with the manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of construction materials across the life cycle of a building or asset—is neglected by comparison. Even at the global level, embodied carbon estimates are typically based on manufacturing emissions from the production of a handful of the highest-impact materials (e.g. concrete, steel, aluminum, and wood).

2025 CLF North American Material Baselines

The CLF North American Material Baselines Report provides a snapshot of the state of environmental product declarations (EPDs) for North American-produced building materials. This report includes: Background and methodology, CLF Baselines (industry-average embodied carbon values), and a Detailed results by material category

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