海角视频

GIZ Impacts of Sustainable Building Materials Study

Germany / Global

With an estimated contribution of 40% of annual global CO₂ emissions, the construction sector is contributing significantly to climate change.

Of those total emissions, building operations are responsible for 28% annually, while building materials and construction are activity responsible for an additional 11% annually. However, unlike operational carbon emissions, which can be reduced over time with improved energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy, embodied carbon emissions are locked in place as soon as a building is constructed.

This means embodied carbon stemming from the extraction, processing or manufacturing, transportation, construction or installation, and disposal of materials makes up a high share of a building鈥檚 climate impact.

Changing industrial and societal practices to successfully transition to sustainable methods of construction is therefore of critical importance to our battle against climate change. This is especially relevant for developing and emerging economies because most of the future鈥檚 construction activity and demand for construction material will happen there 鈥� caused by demographic trends and continuous urbanisation.

Challenge

海角视频 was engaged to research and produce a study on behalf of the GIZ – Deutsche Gesellschaft f眉r Internationale Zusammenarbeit (German Agency for International Cooperation). The project was funded by the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

The report, 鈥�Climate and employment impacts of sustainable building materials in the context of development cooperation鈥�, aims to contribute to understanding the impacts of the construction industry on climate change and particularly the relevance of embodied carbon emissions of different building materials. It aims to do this by providing more detailed information on CO₂ reduction potential as well as the employment effects of using various sustainable building materials.

For the preparation of the study, desk-based research on secondary literature was conducted and experts from across 海角视频鈥檚 own network and BMZ鈥檚 partner network were consulted for additional input.

Many challenges still exist for the upscaling of sustainable construction materials. Some of the largest challenges are rigid or missing codes and regulations, combined with lack of awareness, information or technical knowledge.

Often, builders stay attached to well-known techniques and materials, which in most cases is steel and concrete. Another barrier for implementation is a lack of knowledge on the appropriate use of natural materials and planning for maintenance and repair of building elements.

This also includes using materials鈥� differing characteristic behaviour beneficially, for example to build on structural (rammed earth) or tensile strength (bamboo). Thereby, material properties define the possible development opportunities for different low carbon materials.

Solution

Globally, to date, there is still a lack of detailed data on material use, climate impacts and employment effects resulting from sustainable construction material.

The lack of information on embodied energy and CO₂ emissions of different types of building materials is a big challenge for architects in the design of buildings with low environmental impacts. Even if not all materials can be sourced sustainably or designed for composting or reuse, it is important to contribute to data collection.

The evaluations in the study are presented in the form of building material profiles, each of which is underpinned by an applicable example project.

Recommendations are given to highlight overarching principles to be considered by a range of stakeholders.

Transitioning towards a more sustainable building sector requires the careful assessment and selection of sustainable options depending on their suitability for the respective project typology, local or regional availability of the material, climate mitigation potential, and circularity at the end-of-life of the building.

As part of the conclusion to the report, we give five recommendations that have been identified to support overcoming prevailing challenges for raising awareness and scaling up global implementation of sustainable construction materials. These recommendations break down to examine: design implications, regional use and availability, market presence and local market opportunities, circularity, bottlenecks and challenges.

The report led to a second commission from the GIZ, in collaboration with the London School of Economics (LSE), for the learnings from the initial study to be used by a multi-agency 鈥渢hink tank鈥� applied to a specific location in Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia.

The Addis Ababa Urban Age Task Force (AAUATF) supports the city in advancing its strategic development agenda. The Task Force鈥檚 work builds upon the Addis Ababa City Structure Plan 2017鈥�2027, exploring opportunities for compact and well-connected urban growth that can be delivered through integrated city governance.

The second report, 鈥�Sustainable Building Materials: Exploring green construction options for new housing in Addis Ababa鈥�, aims to provide recommendations for materials to be used in the context of a residential building designed by the Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development (EiABC) at the Addis Ababa University. It is hoped the insights will also support the decision-making processes of developers, architects, and local government agencies in the country more widely.

Value

Changing attitudes towards sustainable construction techniques and low carbon material usage will be critical in lowering the impact of the industry on the climate emergency.

海角视频鈥檚 team of experts brought a range of experiences working on transitional projects and with a range of sustainable materials, as well as engaging with other specialists from across the industry to inform these studies. It is hoped the reports will provide clear insight to the opportunities that are available to the construction industry as it works to transition to a more sustainable way of working in the coming years.  

The initial GIZ report can be downloaded . The follow-up collaboration with the LSE on Addis Ababa is available .