EPD data-fueled embodied carbon tool debuts at Greenbuild

Sources: Carbon Leadership Forum, Seattle; CP staff

The Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF), a University of Washington College of Built Environments-hosted coalition of architecture, engineering and construction stakeholders, formally launched the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) tool in public beta version at the U.S. Green Building Council’s Greenbuild International Conference & Expo in Atlanta. Embodied carbon volumes reflect carbon dioxide emissions attributable to material or product processing, fabrication, delivery, and erection or placement. 

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Top engineer validates structural elements’ embodied carbon

Sources: Thornton Tomasetti, New York; CP staff

A global engineer’s seven-year survey of 600-plus buildings assesses materials, structural components and facility types with the highest embodied carbon, and cites a market-driven trend toward increased use of supplementary cementitious materials and recycled steel as the largest driver of a reduction in that metric. 

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SF Bay Area county approves premier low-carbon concrete code

Sources: Sierra Club California; CP staff

The Marin County (Calif.) Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted an ordinance that adds a low-carbon concrete specification to the county’s building code, effective January 1, 2020. The new code applies to concrete mix designs for all private and public construction projects, and includes pathways for compliance with either reduced cement levels or lower-emission supplementary cementitious materials. 

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