The Built Environment of a Climate Changing World
Buildings, the biggest source of green house gas emission and energy consumption, may also hold the greatest potential to curb climate change. Here’s why it is essential to understand the relationship of our built environment and its increasing pressure to adapt to climate change on both a national and global scale.
It a critical time when the rise of green house gas emissions is met with the Supreme Court’s decision to temporarily halt President Obama’s climate change regulation. This commitment made under the 2015 Paris Agreement states that the United States will reduce its green house gas emissions down 26 percent by 2025, “largely through the EPA regulations on power plants and a mix of rules reining in pollution from cars, buildings and other sources.”
In the discussion of reducing climate change, the role of buildings and their energy consumption is a crucial factor, yet is often excluded. According to a study published by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the building industry accounts for nearly 48 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States per year. This number is nearly double the emissions created by the transportation and industry sectors, 27 and 25 percent respectively, which receive more media coverage. On a global scale, the building industry contributes roughly 40 percent of the emissions and energy consumption.
“When thinking of the interactions between climate change and the built environment, including everything from the scale of the house to the scale of the city, resources flowing through the built environment and resources embodied within it must be distinguished,” states Professor Lynnette Widder, a practicing architect and professor at the Columbia University School of Sustainable Management. The percentages, referenced above, account for the energy required to transport materials during the construction phase of the building, as well as, in its operation and maintenance. Taking into account that the typical lifespan of a building is between 50 to 100 years, the high amount of energy consumed during this time significantly fuels the consequences of climate change. However, the building industry is not static. An additional 22 million buildings are projected to be built over the next twenty years. In conjunction, the US annual energy consumption is projected to increase by 37 percent and greenhouse gas emissions by 36 percent. Annual global energy consumption is projected to increase by 54 percent during the same period.
These expected sharp increases make it impossible to avoid crossing the 2°C limit set by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) — the point after which the impacts of climate change become catastrophic. According to the IPCC, passing this threshold will produce difficulties in managing the further growth of greenhouse gas emissions. To help meet the climate change targets listed above, the global building sector needs to cut its energy consumption by 60 percent by 2050, according to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. These numbers all highlight the urgent need for immediate action on what seems to be an impossible task.
The building sector may have an opportunity to achieve this target. The AIA reports that three quarters of the built environment in the US will be renovated or rebuilt by 2035, allowing architects to design energy efficient buildings, and, thus, reduce the current consumption of fossil fuels. Initiating the start of this phase, the AIA has endorsed the 2030 Challenge as a guideline to lower building energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission. Its two main goals include zero net energy consumption of residential buildings by 2020 and commercial buildings by 2030. The two step plan to get new buildings to be carbon free through its design strategies and use of renewable energy.
Large cities in the US and across the globe are already working to lower their carbon footprint. Places like New York City, Washington D.C., and San Francisco have each developed a sustainability plan to increase energy efficiencies through a series of programs and policies. This is important because urban areas are responsible for over 70% of global COs emissions.
“Architects need to think through the intended and potential life cycles of all materials and resources placed in the built environment,” states Widder, highlighting the significance of long-term thinking in design practices. Similar design and construction strategies have the potential to meet sustainable standards at little or no cost. However, with little demand from consumers or few local and federal policies demanding sustainable construction, many developers don’t see the incentive to build green. Can architects and engineers perpetuate their current building methods, despite having the opportunity to produce more sustainable practices? How does ethical responsibility influence the current global and local policy standards enacted on this issue? It’s time to notice our built environment and the significant impact it plays on the future of climate change.
