Integrating life cycle greenhouse gas emissions into the economic valuations of buildings: developing new mechanisms for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions liability

Abstract

Australia is going through a significant housing boom with 222,000 new homes needed each year to accommodate the estimated additional population of almost 9 million by 2050. With the growing effects of climate change it is critical that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions implications of this new housing be considered. Mitigation strategies have been predominantly focused on decreasing operational GHG emissions in buildings, leaving embodied GHG emissions largely ignored. In order to achieve national targets, such as zero net emissions by 2050, it has become imperative to address GHG mitigation from a life cycle perspective. It has become necessary to couple this life cycle GHG mitigation with an..