The need for more “dynamics” in Life Cycle Assessments for improved building-related decision making processes

Session
MO.2.C || Transfer Towards Climate Neutrality – Scenarios, Options and Valuation

Authors
Kreißig, Johannes; Fischer, Matthias; Braune, Anna

Abstract
Life Cycle Assessment is gaining importance as a concise methodology to assess the environmental impacts of building related decisions. As examples from France, the Netherlands and Denmark show, it is even so much recognized, that the methodology gets included into regulation as a prerequisite for getting building permits. Additionally, the Sustainable Finance criteria of the European Commission (EU Taxonomy) are taking lifecycle GHG emissions into account. Nevertheless, the standardized methodology has some weaknesses when it is used to evaluate potential long-term environmental effects. The use of static emission factors and resources depletion factors for e.g. 50 years of energy use in buildings or the use of LCA datasets for replacement, deconstruction and recycling that are based on current technologies minors the trust of informed decision makers into the entire methodology. The presentation discusses different approaches to address the issue of long-term reference study periods based on calculated examples. How would decisions change if more future-oriented methodologies and data sets would be used?