Industry, finance unearth cost of embodied carbon

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This content is produced in commercial partnership with NAB

As the climate transition enters a new phase, the construction industry is coming into the spotlight, along with the issue of embodied carbon.

Embodied carbon refers to the carbon emissions associated with the entire lifecycle of materials used in the building industry, from extraction and manufacturing, to transportation, construction, and disposal.

The construction sector contributes almost 40 per cent of global emissions. 

The construction sector alone contributes almost 40 per cent of global emissions, with about 25 per cent attributed to the operational emissions of buildings and 10-11 per cent to embodied carbon.

To put the issue into perspective, concrete is the second most used product on earth after water, and a product like green concrete – which may include waste material as a component, have a production process that does not lead to environmental degradation, or has high performance and life cycle sustainability — could reduce the carbon emissions on a project by as much as 30 per cent.

Casey Morecroft, NAB’s executive of corporate banking, says more companies are becoming aware of the importance of addressing embodied carbon, but there is still inconsistency in how it is measured and managed across different projects.

Casey Morecroft, executive of corporate banking at NAB. 

“Attention is rapidly turning to reduction of embodied carbon of materials used in the construction industry, from the extraction of raw materials to manufacturing, transportation, construction, and finally disposal of the materials used,” she says.

“There’s also a bit of myth busting required around some of the new innovations in this area and the view they are either more