Australia’s huge opportunity to cut embodied carbon

As the focus increases on how to reduce embodied carbon emissions in the built environment, a new government report highlights the opportunity for short-term wins, as well as the need to act now for long-term success.

Significant impact

The report, produced by Infrastructure Australia, covers both infrastructure and buildings. It notes that while operational emissions can be reduced through measures such as decarbonising the grid, using efficient equipment and good commissioning and maintenance, embodied carbon emissions are locked in at the point of construction. Reducing embodied carbon emissions therefore generates significant and immediate abatement.

According to the report, embodied carbon from building activity contributed 10 per cent of Australia’s national carbon emissions in 2023, with upfront carbon contributing 7 per cent. The largest sources were buildings (21Mt CO₂e), followed by transport infrastructure (10Mt CO₂e), and utilities (5Mt CO₂e).

The upfront embodied carbon in Australia’s pipeline of infrastructure and buildings is forecast to be between 37Mt CO₂e and 64Mt CO₂e per year for the next five years – a total of 247MtCO₂e unless deliberate action is taken to reduce it.

Huge opportunity

A key finding of the report is that a 23 per cent reduction in upfront carbon emissions is possible by 2026–27 by applying like-for-like decarbonisation strategies in materials such as concrete, steel, aluminium and asphalt. This is equivalent to a reduction of 9Mt CO₂e, roughly 2 per cent of Australia’s gross national GHG emissions of 529Mt CO₂e in 2022–23. This could be reduced even further by optimising design and employing strategies to simply build less.

The report also emphasises the need for immediate action to achieve reductions in harder-to-abate areas.

“In the long-term … the decarbonisation of Australia relies on us cultivating the optimum conditions for success, today,” says Infrastructure Australia Interim Chief Commissioner Gabrielle Trainor AO. “This means developing an informed market that values carbon in policy, and consistently measures and reports embodied emissions.”

In line with this, the report presents six recommendations for governments to consider in the development of sectoral decarbonisation plans that will inform the Australian Government’s Net Zero 2050 plan and 2035 carbon reduction targets.

The report is available at the Infrastructure Australia website.

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