C13 -- Proper Evaluation of Embodied Carbon in Structures

The next design frontier in tackling climate change is reducing the embodied carbon in structural materials. Manufacturers, industry groups, and program operators have responded to requests for additional transparency related to environmental impacts of products by developing EPDs. An environmental product declaration (EPD) is a simplified summary of the environmental impacts of an object that is being assessed. That object can be nearly anything, such as a construction product or service, and is defined by the scope of the assessment. Examples of objects for which an EPD may be developed include a precast concrete hollow-core slab, a lightbulb, or a bridge. EPDs are also known as Type III environmental labels (according to ISO 14025) that report a peer-reviewed summary of the results of a life-cycle assessment (LCA). This presentation will focus on objects that fall into the category of structural materials used in buildings and civil engineering works.