Abstract:
Embodied carbon has become a major focus in the architecture, engineering and construction industries as a strategy for combating climate change. With Federal Highway Administration setting lofty goals and dedicating significant funding for carbon reduction, this focus on embodied carbon is shifting to the transportation industry and public sector projects. Thornton Tomasetti’ s work includes using life cycle analysis (LCA) and embodied carbon tracking to implement reduction strategies. Our presentation will provide a basic introduction to embodied carbon. We will discuss the importance of tracking and benchmarking embodied carbon and the value of environmental product declarations (EPDs) in product sourcing. We will also discuss tools and workflow best practices and embodied carbon reduction measures we have successfully implemented on past projects. We will share our experience and how it can be applied to deep foundations, ground improvement techniques and support of excavation to ensure sustainable design.