New tool for measuring embodied carbon

CIBSE is holding an event about the recently launched TM65ANZ methodology for measuring embodied carbon in building services.

Embodied carbon has been receiving increasing attention lately as countries make more detailed plans for achieving their net zero targets. As the grid decarbonises and operational emissions fall, embodied emissions – or those emissions associated with materials and construction processes throughout the whole life-cycle of a building or infrastructure – will make up a larger proportion of total emissions.

“Embodied carbon is the next frontier for our industry on the road to reducing building emissions,” says CIBSE. The organisation points out that in 2019, embodied and operational emissions from buildings made up a quarter of Australia’s national emissions accounts (137 of 554 Mt CO₂e). Operational emission accounted for 85 per cent of this pie and embodied carbon 15 per cent.

But if construction remains business as usual and operational carbon is driven down to net zero, by 2050, it is expected that embodied carbon will make up 85 per cent of the building sector’s emissions.

A vital step towards managing embodied carbon, is to accurately measure it. The TM65 methodology was developed by CIBSE in the UK to do just that, in the knowledge that full environmental product declarations (EPDs) were still some way off for many manufacturers in the building services space. TM65 has now been revised for Australia and New Zealand, to account for local emissions factors and other local differences, with involvement from local stakeholders including the GBCA and AIRAH.

“The aim of this local addendum to TM65 is to promote transparency in the building services markets in Australia and New Zealand in relation to embodied carbon, and to provide support for manufacturers looking to take the first steps towards assessing the embodied carbon of products,” says CIBSE.

“The TM65ANZ session will discuss the challenges of calculating embodied carbon and how the ANZ addendum to CIBSE TM65 methodology can assist consultants and designers to carry out embodied carbon calculations for mechanical, electrical and plumbing products in a consistent way where no EPD statements exist.”

The session will be held online and in person. For more information on the event and to register, click here.

Photo by Dan Cristian Pădureț on Unsplash