Taking the life-cycle perspective: Report addresses critical issues in building practices
What elements determine how much impact a building has on the environment? If things like roofing, insulation, and energy-efficient windows are among the first things that come to mind, you’re not wrong — but you also don’t have the complete picture. Unfortunately, decision-makers, including architects and builders, may not always have the full picture up front either. While there have been promising advances in building methods and technologies designed to increase energy efficiency and lower the environmental impact of buildings, most building codes and energy efficiency standards address just the use phase of the building — this could inadvertently encourage manufacturing activities with higher long-term environmental impacts. “Buildings are complex,” says MIT Professor Jeremy Gregory, executive director of the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub (CSHub). “To understand the full environmental impact of a structure over decades of use, all phases — starting before construction and continuing on to the very end of the...