The contribution of cleaner production in the material industry to reducing embodied energy and emissions in China's building sector

Abstract

Quantifying embodied energy and emissions (EEEs) can help clarify the consumption-based responsibilities of the building sector. Material consumption accounts for over 80% of the total EEEs, which is substantially affected by cleaner production measures in the material industry. Previous studies have not accurately calculated the EEEs by overlooking or oversimplifying these effects. This study aims to address this issue by making predictions about the building sector of Mainland China, which includes the floor areas of new buildings and the related material consumption between 2020 and 2035. In total, 29 cleaner production measures for steel, cement, brick, glass, and timber industries are collected. The embodied energy and CO2, SO2, NOx, and PM emissions reduction effects of the adopted measures are quantified and analysed using conservation supply curve and uncertainty analysis approaches. The results show the EEEs from material consumption will decrease by 45.9–60.7% from 2020 to 2035, to which the cleaner production measures contribute about half. The EEEs have significant spatial disparity. For example, Guangdong Province takes 2% of China's land area, but undertakes 7–9% of the domestic EEEs. The uneven distributions may cause heavy energy and environmental pressures in some provinces. The specific costs of the EEEs reductions differ by 2–4 orders of magnitude, while 30.4–34.5% and 65.5–67.8% of the embodied energy and CO2 emission reduction effects are cost-effective. This study reveals the vital role of cleaner production in EEEs reductions and provides critical insights into the green development of the building sector.