Whole Life Cycle Carbon Assessment

As anyone involved in building development projects is now encouraged to account for carbon emissions resulting from the building material sourcing and manufacture, construction process and use of the premises throughout its whole lie, including demolition and disposal, we are now offering Whole Life-Cycle Carbon (WLC) assessments. 

WLC emissions include operational carbon emissions from the building’s energy and water use but also its embodied carbon emissions – those connected with raw material extraction, manufacturing and transportation of materials to and from construction sites, and the emissions associated with maintenance, repair and replacement as well as deconstruction, demolition and eventual material disposal.

A WLC assessment also includes the potential to offset emission levels by the ability to recover and reuse and/ or recycle materials at the end of the building’s life, thus presenting an holistic picture of the building’s overall impact on the environment.

As the World Green Building Council in 2018 estimated that 11% of the world’s embodied carbon emissions come from the construction industry, developers, architects and engineers are all encouraged to apply Whole Life Cycle principles to their work.

In the UK, the Mayor of London’s office has published guidance on WLC assessments which focus on estimates of life cycle emissions, opportunities and constraints regarding carbon emission reduction for any major referable developments, materials and end of life scenarios, including the potential percentage of any materials that can be recycled or reused, and key actions to be taken to reduce carbon emissions related to that building.

Whole Life Cycle Carbon emissions approaches ensure that a significant source of GHG from the built environment are accounted for which is necessary to