Cities as carbon sinks—classification of wooden buildings

Abstract

Although buildings produce a third of greenhouse gas emissions, it has been suggested that they might be one of the most cost-effective climate change mitigation solutions. Among building materials, wood not only produces fewer emissions according to life-cycle assessment but can also store carbon. This study aims to estimate the carbon storage potential of new European buildings between 2020 and 2040. While studies on this issue exist, they mainly present rough estimations or are based on a small number of case studies. To ensure a reliable estimation, 50 different case buildings were selected and reviewed. The carbon storage per m2 of each case building was calculated and three types of wooden buildings were identified based on their carbon storage capacity. Finally, four European construction scenarios were generated based on the percentage of buildings constructed from wood and the type of wooden buildings. The annual captured CO2 varied between 1 and 55 Mt, which is equivalent to between 1% and 47% of CO2 emissions from the cement industry in Europe. This study finds that the carbon storage capacity of buildings is not significantly influenced by the type of building, the type of wood or the size of the building but rather by the number and the volume of wooden elements used in the structural and non-structural components of the building. It is recommended that policymakers aiming for carbon-neutral construction focus on the number of wooden elements in buildings rather than more general indicators, such as the amount of wood construction, or even detailed indirect indicators, such as building type, wood type or building size. A practical scenario is proposed for use by European decision-makers, and the role of wood in green building certification is discussed.

Environmental Life-Cycle Assessment and Life-Cycle Cost Analysis of a High-Rise Mass Timber Building: A Case Study in Pacific Northwestern United States

“…Increasing energy demand from buildings and buildings construction is partially driven by surge in global buildings floor area and population [1]. Natural climate solutions have been proposed as one way to mitigate these impacts along with a drive for environmental and economic sustainability [2,3]. The nature of the building construction requires multi-criteria decision-making support and optimization of many aspects including environmental and economic costs [4].…”

“…The nature of the building construction requires multi-criteria decision-making support and optimization of many aspects including environmental and economic costs [4]. New construction using wood from sustainably-harvest forest is a natural climate solution by both reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and by storing carbon while providing economic incentives for keeping forests as forest and even afforestation [2,3]. Mass timber construction (MTC), an emerging technology has become an available option to concrete and steel construction which are the primary construction materials for mid-to high-rise nonresidential buildings globally [5,6].…”

“…Percentage of material used in the M & R 2. the rate at which material is landfilled after building demolition.…”

Targeted acetylation of wood: a tool for tuning wood-water interactions

“…Wood is an increasingly important material in the sustainable transition of societies worldwide. This is especially so in the construction sector, where replacing energy-intensive materials like concrete and steel with wood from sustainably managed forests can significantly lower the carbon footprint (Amiri et al 2020;Churkina 2020). The performance of wood is intimately tied to the presence of moisture in the material, which affects important characteristics such as dimensions, mechanical properties, and durability.…”

How can carbon be stored in the built environment? A review of potential options

“…The global climate benefits of wood construction have been calculated by various studies, such as Churkina et al (2020) and Amiri et al (2020). Both studies show the potential of storing carbon in buildings on global level and the advantages thereby.…”