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For Whole-Building LCA, how do you choose the baseline building?

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NC-v4 MRc1:Building life-cycle impact reduction

Whole Building LCA

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Nove Sol
LEEDuser Basic Member
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I have three questions about whole building LCA. I have a client who wants to evaluate the impact of wood vs concrete building construction.

  1. Just by a quick look at the raw material extraction phase, the impact of concrete construction is higher. On the other hand, by looking at the whole lifecycle assessment from cradle to grave the impact of building with wood might be higher, is this normal? Im keeping the total U value for the building envelope the same in both criteria.
  2. For the selection of materials, there is a big database available in the software (I’m using Oneclick LCA). The CO2 emissions vary considerably… what is the priority for material selection since we have this huge difference?
  3. In case of selecting materials from other country, just for calculations, does it really makes sense, since theoretically it is very difficult to get these materials in the country where the project is located…?

 

 

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Spencer Jarrett
Business Developer
One Click LCA
LEEDuser Basic Member
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Tue, 05/30/2023 - 18:06

Hello Nove,  1. It is difficult to say what is normal.  The environmental impact of wood construction can vary widely depending on how/where it was harvested, manufactured, the transport distance, its EOL processing, and other factors that are considered in a WBLCA.  It really depends on the specific scenario and the assumptions that are made in the LCA.  The same can be said for concrete.     2.  The specific impacts of each material and their quantities are the basis for the LCA.  So, the selection of materials should be given high priority and be as accurate as possible for the project.  3.  It depends on the scenario you are assessing. 
  1. It is obviously much simpler if you are positive that you'll be shipping the materials from another country for the project.  It would be most accurate to choose the manufacturer/country specific material and modify the transport distance and vehicle. 
  2. If there is no EPD/generic material data yet available for the product that you wish to source from the country that the project is in, you could choose the material you want from another country and change the localization settings for that material on One Click LCA.  This will then calculate the impact of this product as if it were made in country by using the electrical grid data for the specific region or state that it will be made in.  
Hope this helps!  

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