Adapting for shared use – evaluating the lifecycle carbon impact

Abstract

Vast amounts of resources extracted through the times are in today’s built environment, with only an estimated 20-30% of building material recycled or reused and the sector accounting for over 35% of the EU’s total waste generation. Buildings are also responsible for 25-40% of all global carbon dioxide emissions. Circular Economy (CE) refers to the better management of resources and waste by closing material and energy loops, as well as minimizing the material that enters the system to begin with. In the built environment context, adaptive reuse reduces the need for new construction through adapting existing buildings to new uses. Another way is to use existing space more efficiently, e.g., through co-location, sharing and flexible workspaces which all lead to higher utilisation rates. This study will assess the lifecycle carbon impact of an adaptive reuse project which aims for space efficiency through reconfiguring the spaces and upgrading and increasing the dimensions and accessibility of services. Three different lifecycle analyses (LCAs) are made using typical and conservative data manually, as well as one LCA tool, to compare how the choice of method impacts the LCA results. The main sources of impact within the system boundaries will also be explored, in order to understand the relationship between different lifecycle phases in an adaptive reuse project. The results can form a baseline for similar renovation projects which include space efficiency measures, as this project did in terms of sharing spaces. Future research will include comparing the results of this project with a minor renovation scenario for the same building, where space efficiency was not included. Less building work would lead to a lower impact per m2, however not necessarily per person as less people would be able to utilise the space.