Towards a Preservation–Sustainability Nexus: Applying LCA to Reduce the Environmental Footprint of Modern Built Heritage

Maria Karoglou,Chryssa Theofani,Christos Boukouvalas,Magdalini Krokida,Stella Sofia Kyvelou,Asterios Bakolas,Antonia Moropoulou

doi:10.3390/su11216147

Abstract

There is a deep and often impassioned postulation that preservation is virtuous for societal well-being, collective identity and for the environment. This idea is an important paradigm to guide rehabilitation strategies for historic buildings. However, there is a need for data and research in order to validate the contribution of preservation to environmental and cultural sustainability. These research results will support preservation-related decision-making, in which tensions and conflicts with sustainability goals are a routine. Nowadays, there is a strong belief that historic buildings of the 20th century also need to be preserved to create the identities of neighborhoods and cities and suitable strategies need to be applied to extend their lifespan in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way. This research, based on the assumption that integrating sustainability considerations in historic buildings needs a quantifiable approach, selected eight refugee block apartment flats dating back to the interwar period—endowed with architectural, aesthetical and urban history-related values and acknowledged as exceptional examples of Bauhaus architecture in Greece—for an experimental procedure based on life cycle analysis (LCA). Taking into account the deteriorated state of conservation of the buildings, different preservation interventions were analyzed, focusing on the conservation of the initial architectural form of the buildings and critical issues such as the increase in energy efficiency after restoration. The research concludes that this type of assessment can inform urban strategies, making a nexus between preservation and the environmental component of sustainability.

Highlights

There is a deep and often impassioned postulation that built heritage preservation is virtuous for societal well-being, collective identity and for the planet [1]
Every conducted life cycle analysis (LCA) study begins with an explicit statement of its goal and scope, which in turn sets out the barriers and context of the study
The experiment proved that LCA can be successfully applied for assessing the environmental footprint of a historic building complex

Summary

Introduction

There is a deep and often impassioned postulation that built heritage preservation is virtuous for societal well-being, collective identity and for the planet [1]. Cities and neighborhoods are not spaces created ex nihilo, without roots It is the history of the place and the signs of the past that bring to people the feeling of belonging. While this idea may be an important paradigm, there is a need for data and research in order to validate the contribution of preservation to environmental, economic, social and cultural sustainability. The choice of sustainable development emphasizes the goal to adopt a critical spirit and a different perception of quality of life It is a matter of social and collective character rather than an individual one [2]. The reform of economic relations in political terms is an anthropocentric approach that takes environmental concerns seriously [3]

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