Don’t shoot yourself in the foot trying to reduce greenhouse gas emissions!

A new report from the European Academies Science Advisory Council argues that a fundamental policy changes are needed if we are to successfully tackle greenhouse gas emissions from the built environment, construction processes and the supply of building products. Dr. William Gillett and Professor Brian Norton of MaREI @Tyndall National Institute, take a look

“A recent report by the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC) explains that while policymakers have long focused on reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by operating buildings, this is only part of the story.

Embodied GHG emissions are produced during the manufacture of construction materials, notably cement and steel so, to avoid shooting yourself in the foot when renovating existing buildings, it is also important to limit the embodied GHG emissions caused by your renovations.

The report advises EU policymakers to update EU legislation using an integrated approach to phase out fossil fuels, increase renewable energy supplies and reduce cumulative (operating plus embodied) GHG emissions from buildings.”

The full article can be accessed here