Environmental Dimensions of Climate Change: Endurance and Change in Material Culture

Abstract

Buildings are responsible for 40% of energy consumption and approximately 14 gigatons of all energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions each year. If the goal of reaching net zero by mid-century is to be achieved, global climate change must be urgently addressed, and the 50% benchmark of the phased reduction in emissions must be reached by the year 2030.Reducing carbon emissions in the operational sector of buildings remains an urgent priority. In addition, the production of most building construction materials remains carbon-intensive. Without quantifying and considering the embodied energy of the materials in our buildings, a significant obstacle continues to block the path of achieving net-zero emissions in the building sector.Aluminum and glass, both predominant materials in the building skin, have high embodied energy. It is imperative that buildings that achieve a net-zero status do so while ensuring that ALL sources of emissions, including embodied carbon, be taken into consideration. This study seeks to elucidate the definition of net-zero buildings to address these issues and to advance the knowledge of this category of buildings by addressing the impact and role of envelope materials and systems in reducing carbon footprint.KeywordsNet zeroOperational carbonEmbodied carbonCradle to gateGreenhouse gas emissionsLife-cycle analysis (LCA)DecarbonizarionCarbon neutralityDesign for disassembly2050 challengeParis Agreement