Industry group ZERO has taken up the mission to raise awareness of embodied carbon and revolutionise the way we approach construction-related emissions with carbon information management
Balancing our built and natural environments and carbon information management has become increasingly important as humanity has expanded its footprint across the planet. Alongside challenges in water, land and energy management, the construction industry has emerged as a significant contributor to carbon emissions. A lesser-known aspect of these emissions is “embodied” carbon, which includes extraction, material processing, transport, assembly and construction processes. These embodied emissions account for 12% of all human-related emissions and have long remained hidden from view.
Raising awareness of carbon information management
At ZERO, our primary focus is to shed light on embodied carbon, particularly in places and communities where discussions on the subject are not commonplace. Our members are from a wide range of backgrounds: we’re an industry group made up of 90% non-sustainability roles. We’re engineers, project managers, surveyors, scientists, educators, planners, architects, technologists, entrepreneurs, owners, clients and manufacturers. In just 12 months, ZERO’s membership has grown from 100 to 2,500, indicating that “carbon” is an increasingly significant subject in the industry.
Understanding the challenge
To effectively tackle the challenge of reducing emissions, ZERO has adopted a wide-angle approach. We’re examining each stage of construction projects, going beyond just materials and methods. We consider the financial drivers, design processes, the insurance landscape, procurement methods and the measurement of carbon.
Additionally, we recognise the need for skills development, target setting, and the implementation of tax and regulatory measures to drive significant change throughout the industry.
Making an impact
ZERO plans to make an impact through various channels. We actively participate in industry events, host our own workshops, run our own podcast and are building a social media presence across various channels.
In the past year, we’ve also been building a wiki-style playbook, which serves as a foundation of knowledge going forward. This “ZERO Playbook” was released in April 2023, and we’re open to comments, edits and contributions from everyone. It provides a basic guide to understanding embodied emissions in construction and offers practical steps to initiate change.
As importantly, it provides a means for connection between members looking to share lessons and knowledge. These connections, and the resulting social network, is something that we’re actively building.
The ZERO Playbook
The ZERO Playbook covers six pillars of embodied carbon: leadership, design, measurement, skills, construction and innovation.
Each pillar includes 10 modules, with concise explanations of the topic limited to a few hundred words. These modules are action-focused and provide an initial step towards decarbonisation.
Additionally, external links and case studies are included to encourage further reading and learning.
We’re currently adding four further pillars on digital, materials, finance, and circularity, and welcome new members on these topics.
Engaging BIM and digital specialists
ZERO recognises the crucial role of BIM and digital specialists in tackling embodied emissions. Firstly, the experience we’ve all gained from decades of digital transformation can be used to accelerate the required “carbon transformation”. Secondly, we as a community need to better understand how we can measure, report and manage embodied carbon. This can only happen with carbon information management and digital tools.
What this might mean at the project level is for digital specialists to work closely with quantity surveyors and carbon managers to calculate, trace and report carbon data.
Calculation, literacy and accountability
To drive meaningful change, the construction industry will need to make progress in three key areas: calculation, literacy, and accountability. All future projects will need to provide a traceable, confidently calculated and well-quantified embodied carbon total footprint. This figure should become a standard reporting metric for all projects. There are (minor) technical challenges in achieving this, but it’s practically achievable with today’s tools.
This visibility of embodied carbon will lead to improved literacy. We, as construction professionals, will become more familiar with carbon figures just by seeing them regularly. This is already happening in our personal lives, so it’s not a big leap to imagine us seeing carbon totals on construction products, materials, and projects.
These calculations and our increased carbon literacy will, in turn, drive greater accountability within the industry. It will simply be bad for businesses to deliver high embodied carbon buildings and infrastructure.
Conclusion
In the years ahead, our industry will significantly reduce embodied carbon emissions. ZERO’s mission to raise awareness, provide guidance through the ZERO Playbook, and promote calculation, literacy, and accountability is our way of supporting this change.
Collaboration between industry professionals, including BIM and digital specialists, is essential in leveraging expertise and accelerating the necessary carbon transformation. By embracing these principles, the construction industry can build a future that not only supports our built environment but also safeguards our natural world.
ZERO is currently run as a pro bono organisation, and membership is free. We thank our generous sponsors XYZ Reality, Sterling, by RapidDCS and Bentley Systems for supporting our growth to date. To become a member please sign up at www.zeroconstruct.com/membership
*Please note: This is a commercial profile.
James Bowles
Founder
ZERO
zero.carbon@zeroconstruct.com
www.zeroconstruct.com
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