Life-Cycle Assessment
Life-cycle assessment, or LCA, is the science of quantifying environmental impacts through the entire process of creating, transporting, using, and disposing of a product or material. Environmental impacts assessed include things like embodied carbon, smog-creation potential, and fossil fuel consumption.
For building professionals, LCA comes into play in two main ways. To understand the impacts of specific products, look to an environmental product declaration (EPD). To understand the impacts of an entire building, a whole-building LCA is required. Specialized tools are used to perform whole-building LCA.
Life-Cycle Assessment
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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The Missing Embodied Carbon Link: Construction
Feature Article
Some researchers say construction emissions could account for as much as 30% of a project’s embodied carbon. What can be done about it?
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The Urgency of Embodied Carbon and What You Can Do about It
Feature Article
Building materials emit massive amounts of carbon long before the lights go on. Here’s how thoughtful design can reduce global warming impact.
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Better Steel, Lower Impacts
Feature Article
Steel’s reputation for high embodied energy and carbon emissions are well documented, but improvements in processing, product selection, and end use can minimize these impacts.
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Engineering a Wood Revolution
Feature Article
Engineered wood products are challenging concrete and steel in structural applications while proffering a lower environmental footprint.
Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Building Decarbonization: How LCA and EPDs Fit in
Explainer
Life-cycle assessment and environmental product declarations reveal embodied carbon and other impacts, but it’s important to know their limits.
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EPD Quick-Start Guide: 5 Easy Steps
Infographic
Use these tips to get what you need from an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD), fast.
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Retrofit or Build New? How Product Teams are Choosing
Infographic
Reasons to retrofit, reasons to tear down and build new, and how to decide.
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How to Read an EPD: 7 Tips from the Field (Video)
Explainer
In this short video primer, Arup engineer Frances Yang explains how to get what you need from environmental product declarations.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Carbon Now or Later: The Arguments for Delaying Emissions
News Analysis
A new Arup report demystifies the time value of carbon, why it matters, and why we need to be careful with it.
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ECHO Publications Aim to Standardize Whole-Building LCA
News Brief
Building industry NGOs publish two reports to drive widespread project-level embodied carbon reporting.
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IRA Accelerates Low-Carbon Building Products
News Brief
EPA shares its plan for a low-embodied-carbon labeling program, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act.
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California’s Embodied Carbon Code May Embolden Other States
News Analysis
CalGreen’s new embodied carbon requirement is unprecedented in the U.S. We analyze the code and what might come next for other states.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Building Products Matter Even More Than We Thought
Op-Ed
Operational energy use is critical, but materials might be an even bigger part of the solution to climate change and other pressing environmental issues.
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Opinion: EPDs Are One Small Step for Design Professionals, a Giant Leap for Industry
Op-Ed
Uptake of life-cycle assessment will produce huge amounts of data that designers can use to reduce whole-building impacts.
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Opinion: Orwellian EPDs Ignore the Worst Impacts of Wood, Vinyl
Op-Ed
Although life-cycle assessment has great promise, in the wrong hands it can be used for greenwashing.
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Life-Cycle Assessment "A Powerful Tool When Used Right"
Op-Ed
A leading voice on life-cycle assessment offers a call to action for responsible use of LCA for sustainable design.
Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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The Missing Embodied Carbon Link: Construction
Feature Article
Some researchers say construction emissions could account for as much as 30% of a project’s embodied carbon. What can be done about it?
-
The Urgency of Embodied Carbon and What You Can Do about It
Feature Article
Building materials emit massive amounts of carbon long before the lights go on. Here’s how thoughtful design can reduce global warming impact.
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Let’s Get Real about Wood’s Carbon Footprint
Webcast
You’ve probably heard that wood products are carbon neutral. You might also have heard that timber harvesting causes immense carbon emissions. Which is it? Could it be both?
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The Missing Embodied Carbon Link: Construction
Spotlight Report
