Infrastructure - Haggard Earth

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Transforming Existing Buildings from Climate Liabilities to Climate Assets. Low-embodied-carbon and carbon-storing materials in building retrofits can reduce total building emissions.RMI Eva Rosenbloom, Chris Magwood, Heather Clark, Victor Olgyay 2023 Investing in existing buildings makes climate sense; retrofitting an existing building emits 50 to 75 percent less carbon than constructing the same building new. However, we cannot ignore the embodied carbon impact of these retrofits. It is important to consider the upfront embodied carbon emissions that arise from the production, transportation, and installation of materials to prevent a spike in emissions that will negate years of the operating emissions reductions achieved through retrofits.This report provides data to support using low-carbon and carbon-storing materials in deep energy retrofits to reduce net emissions and transform buildings into climate assets. The study focuses on retrofit strategies for cold and mixed-humid climates and analyzes how reducing embodied carbon upfront impacts long-term operating emissions reductions through two examples of affordable multifamily housing deep energy retrofit projects in the Northeast. The report also includes case studies of successful completed retrofit projects and a list of available building products that use carbon-storing materials such as straw, bamboo and hemp for design teams and manufacturers.

Realizing the full benefits of carbon-storing materials requires innovation from manufacturers, designers, and the industry. Policies that support investment in low-embodied-carbon products, carbon-storing materials, and deep energy retrofit solutions can speed up this process. The lessons on embodied carbon can be applied to the broader decarbonization of buildings. Key Takeaways......

The analysis of 24 deep energy retrofit exterior insulation systems reveals that lower embodied carbon options exist today and can be substituted for traditional materials.
Using lower-embodied-carbon or carbon-storing materials can reduce operating emissions quickly, and in best case scenarios, the building can store carbon for its remaining service life.
The use of carbon-storing materials in retrofits becomes increasingly important as the industry strives to meet 2030 decarbonization goals.
Support for the development of carbon-storing material manufacturing can bolster the clean energy economy and create new economic growth and green jobs.
The right policies can make existing buildings carbon sinks, storing greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere and reducing their impact on the environment......read the report https://rmi.org/wp-content/uploads/dlm_uploads/2023/10/transforming_existing_buildings_from_climate_liabilities_to_climate_assets_updated.pdf

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Bringing long-buried streams to light a part of urban renewal in Vancouver. CBC's The Early Edition new column about urban design and city living 'About Here'CBC Apr 28, 2019 You might be familiar with False Creek, but underneath the city of Vancouver are dozens of streams and creeks, buried long ago and diverted through a network of pipes. Now, some of these streams are making a comeback. Still Creek, which runs through Burnaby and into East Vancouver, is one such example, said Uytae Lee, a columnist with CBC's The Early Edition. Parts of it were buried and now parts of it are being restored. "Streams such as Still Creek and others like it were once considered a nuisance," Lee told CBC's Stephen Quinn. "They would often get in the way of road construction or buildings ... They were also these dumping grounds for garbage, so there was really this incentive to bury them and that's kind of just what happened."

Environmental benefits.....Lee says the process of uncovering long-buried streams — called daylighting — can have environmental benefits that go beyond becoming a natural habitat for wildlife or park space for humans. "We're sort of finally realizing that nature has a lot more value than we often give it credit for and that you know our concrete and engineered solutions often kind of suck compared to them," Lee said........and watch the video in the article https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bringing-long-buried-streams-to-light-a-part-of-urban-renewal-in-vancouver-1.5111383.......also checkout......'Burying rivers is not a great idea:' Cities work to uncover their hidden waterways.......and watch.......Salmon make a miraculous reappearance in East Vancouver

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Can cities build their way out of both the housing and the climate crises? A massive global study finds cities can deliver millions of new homes without exhausting the world’s carbon budget—if they abandon carbon-intensive construction norms. Anthropocene Sarah DeWeerdt January 27, 2026 Building things in cities accounts for 10-20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study, and could soon gobble up the entire remaining carbon budget available to keep global warming within 2° C. “Construction emissions are an important but often-overlooked part of the climate change picture,” says study team member Keagan Rankin, a graduate student at the University of Toronto. “Cities have a lot of control over what gets built in the future, so they are in a good position to reduce construction emissions, but they have historically overlooked construction emissions in their decarbonization plans.”The researchers quantified emissions across the entire supply chain for construction and maintenance of housing, non-residential buildings, streets, sidewalks, utilities, and other urban infrastructure in more than 1,000 cities around the world. The data encompass cities in 40 high- and middle-income countries across 6 continents, with populations ranging from 50,000 to 10 million and a total population of 1.2 billion, or 15% of the global population. Construction emissions range from 0.1 to 6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person per year, with most cities clustering around 1 to 3 metric tons per person per year, the researchers found. The construction sector hasn’t seen the “decoupling” between investment and emissions that has happened in other parts of the economy. In cities in high-income countries, construction emissions have held steady since 2000 at about 1 metric ton of carbon dioxide per person per year.

The stark reality: Emissions from all sources must be reduced to about 2.3 metric tons per person per year by 2030 to stay within the 2° C warming limit. And when it comes to construction emissions specifically, most cities will have to reach net-zero within 20-40 years to reach that global goal. For many high-income cities, that means “historically unprecedented” rates of emissions reductions, Rankin says.The good news is that the way out of this bind does not require building less, but instead building better. “We were surprised that many cities could meet both their housing and climate goals into the 2030s within existing building designs (no technology changes needed),” says Rankin. Promising strategies include choosing designs that make the most efficient use of materials; building more multi-unit apartments and fewer single-family homes.....read on https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/01/can-cities-build-their-way-out-of-both-the-housing-and-the-climate-crises/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=urban-construction-emissions-remain-sky-high

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Rethinking approaches to industrial policy for a net-zero future. IISD Andrew Aziz September 15, 2025 As the global economy undergoes a profound green transformation, an important policy revolution is underway. Green industrial policy—government efforts to boost low-carbon, environmentally sustainable production and technologies—is now at the heart of major debates on development, trade, and climate. To better understand the obstacles standing in the way of progress and identify possible solutions, IISD is bringing together a wide group of global experts in a series of roundtables. This article outlines some of the most salient thinking that has emerged so far from these meetings. As the global economy undergoes a profound green transformation, an important policy revolution is underway. Green industrial policy—government efforts to boost low-carbon, environmentally sustainable production and technologies—is now at the heart of major debates on development, trade, and climate. To better understand the obstacles standing in the way of progress and identify possible solutions, IISD is bringing together a wide group of global experts in a series of roundtables.

This article outlines some of the most salient thinking that has emerged so far from these meetings....... As countries strive to make good on national commitments to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, the economic opportunities in this new sector have attracted new innovators and piqued the interest of traditional energy producers. But success has not been easy. From solar panel manufacturers to electric vehicle makers to green steel producers, economic challenges have plagued many fledgling companies trying to gain a foothold in the green economy. In response to this, supportive governments often turn to a wide range of instruments to reinforce priority sectors that are essential for the net-zero transition. These supports might help, but they are rarely a perfect solution as they can adversely affect competition, job creation, and innovation both domestically and among trading partners.

“We are dealing with a climate crisis that impacts everyone. We need policies for that..."This is why leading academics and thinkers are now coming together to ask crucial questions, identify roadblocks, and advance policy solutions. In May 2025, thought leaders convened in Geneva for the first of a series of roundtables aimed at laying the groundwork for future work in this area. Participants explored crucial issues such as policy design and impact, tensions between social and environmental priorities, trade dimensions, and challenges faced by developing countries.

Designing “good” green industrial policy.......While countries are looking to advance green sectors and technologies, the question of how to support them to achieve optimal outcomes is complex. Without clear objectives and safeguards, environmental policy initiatives could jeopardize development objectives or cause unintended trade distortions. But with thoughtful planning, smart policies can drive inclusive growth and innovation.“You have to be clear about the objectives,” said Takaaki Sashida of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Geneva. “You can have multiple objectives, but unless you know what it is your policy is aiming for, it's hard to make it a success.”

“You can have multiple objectives, but unless you know what it is your policy is aiming for, it's hard to make it a success.”.......A vibrant green economy would be the bedrock of a strong, healthy, and sustainable future. Innovative technologies have grown in leaps and bounds in recent decades, promising to transform polluting sectors and create new possibilities for clean energy production. So why does the dream of establishing this vibrant green industry—one that balances economic, social and environmental priorities—remain so elusive for so many countries?As countries strive to make good on national commitments to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, the economic opportunities in this new sector have attracted new innovators and piqued the interest of traditional energy producers. But success has not been easy. From solar panel manufacturers to electric vehicle makers to green steel producers, economic challenges have plagued many fledgeling companies trying to gain a foothold in the green economy. In response to this, supportive governments often turn to a wide range of instruments to reinforce priority sectors that are essential for the net-zero transition. These supports might help, but they are rarely a perfect solution as they can adversely affect competition, job creation, and innovation both domestically and among trading partners.

“We are dealing with a climate crisis that impacts everyone. We need policies for that..." This is why leading academics and thinkers are now coming together to ask crucial questions, identify roadblocks, and advance policy solutions. In May 2025, thought leaders convened in Geneva for the first of a series of roundtables aimed at laying the groundwork for future work in this area. Participants explored crucial issues such as policy design and impact, tensions between social and environmental priorities, trade dimensions, and challenges faced by developing countries.

Designing “good” green industrial policy.......While countries are looking to advance green sectors and technologies, the question of how to support them to achieve optimal outcomes is complex. Without clear objectives and safeguards, environmental policy initiatives could jeopardize development objectives or cause unintended trade distortions. But with thoughtful planning, smart policies can drive inclusive growth and innovation.“You have to be clear about the objectives,” said Takaaki Sashida of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Geneva. “You can have multiple objectives, but unless you know what it is your policy is aiming for, it's hard to make it a success.”

“You can have multiple objectives, but unless you know what it is your policy is aiming for, it's hard to make it a success.”.......Concerns that markets alone will be unable to deliver a successful green transition are prompting a global shift in how governments approach industrial policy. Since the global pandemic, national priorities have changed dramatically. National security and geopolitical concerns are now taking centre stage, while traditional goals like economic competitiveness have become less influential on policy decisions.

As governments rethink their policy priorities, some experts are calling for a return to fundamentals......read on https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/rethinking-approaches-industrial-policy-net-zero-futurez

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Low-Cost, High-Value Opportunities to Reduce Embodied Carbon in Buildings, RMI Matt Jungclaus Aug 4, 2021 Buildings account for at least 39 percent of energy-related global carbon emissions on an annual basis. At least one-quarter of these emissions result from embodied carbon, or the carbssions associated with building materials and construction. The solutions for addressing embodied carbon in buildings have not been widely studied in the United States, leaving a significant knowledge gap for engineers, architects, contractors, policymakers, and building owners. Further, there is little information about the cost-effectiveness of reducing embodied carbon in buildings.

RMI’s new report, Reducing Embodied Carbon in Buildings: Low-Cost, High-Value Opportunities, helps fill this knowledge gap. The report demonstrates low- or no-cost options to reduce embodied carbon in buildings and provides design and construction strategies that can help limit a project’s embodied carbon. The case studies showcased in the report show an embodied carbon savings potential of 19 percent to 46 percent at cost premiums of less than 1 percent. Current practice indicates that we can achieve these reductions by specifying and substituting material alternatives with lower embodied carbon during the design and specification process. Far greater reductions are possible through a whole-building design approach.

This report was developed to help building owners, designers, contractors, and policymakers understand the low-cost and no-cost solutions for reducing embodied carbon in buildings. To accomplish that, we studied three building types and considered design strategies that can reduce embodied carbon at any stage of a project’s design and construction phases. The report quantifies the construction cost difference associated with low-embodied-carbon solutions and points to next-generation solutions that could drive even greater reductions.

Critical Materials Driving Embodied Carbon in US Buildings......In order to tackle embodied carbon in buildings, we first need to understand the carbon impact of the industries driving embodied carbon emissions. A building’s structure and substructure typically constitute the largest source of its up-front embodied carbon, up to 80 percent depending on building type. However, because of the relatively rapid renovation cycle of building interiors associated with tenancy and turnover, the total embodied carbon associated with interiors can account for a similar amount of emissions over the lifetime of a building. Our report focuses primarily on structural materials, metals (including steel and aluminum), cement, and timber. Each of these materials has a different embodied carbon content but is critical to our consideration of structural systems in this context.

Proven Solutions and Strategies to Reduce Embodied Carbon......Today, there are many solutions that can be leveraged to limit embodied carbon in new buildings. The totality of low-embodied-carbon solutions includes a long list of offerings that span a wide range of complexity. Most simply, low-embodied-carbon solutions for buildings can be broken down into three main categories: whole-building design, one-for-one material substitution, and specification......read on https://rmi.org/low-cost-high-value-opportunities-to-reduce-embodied-carbon-in-buildings/

Transforming Existing Buildings from Climate Liabilities to Climate Assets.

Bringing Long-buried Streams to Light a part of Urban Renewal in Vancouver.

Can Cities Build their way out of Both the Housing and the Climate Crises?

Rethinking Approaches to Industrial Policy for a Net-zero Future.

Low-Cost, High-Value Opportunities to Reduce Embodied Carbon in Buildings,

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