Upfront carbon emissions represent around 20 per cent of all emissions from a new building.
Unlike operational emissions, upfront carbon emissions are spent on the day the building opens which means it cannot change.
Industry has made great strides to decarbonise its operational carbon, from energy efficiency measures to electrification but the same cannot be said for upfront carbon emissions.
The situation is made worse because little is known about the amount of embodied carbon in the mechanical, electrical and hydraulic systems in a building.
Recent developments out of the UK and Australia aim to change this through the introduction of TM65 and the work being done in Green Star and NABERS.
To drill down on these topics two speakers will deliver presentations at ARBS including Taryn Cornell, senior manager for Green Star strategy and development at the Green Building Council of Australia.
Cornell recently launched the GBCA’s A Practical Guide to Electrification for New Buildings and is working on a similar guide for existing buildings, as well as a discussion paper for grid integrated buildings.
She is also a member of CIBSE’s Australia and theTM65 working group, which aims to decarbonise products in the mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic services sector.
The second speaker is Jorge Chapa, head of market transformation at the Green Building Council of Australia.
As the head of market transformation, Chapa is responsible for ensuring the GBCA's product and service offerings deliver healthy, resilient and positive places for people and nature.
This includes setting the vision for Green Star, Australia’s leading rating system for the built environment. He is the chair of World GBC’s Global Commitment for Net Zero Carbon Buildings Taskforce. He is also a member of Climate Bonds Initiative building standards working group.