01-21-2025
Posted on: 02-03-2022
If you’re licensed in California, it’s not news that the practice of architecture is rapidly moving toward design that involves a zero-net carbon future.
On September 16, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1010 into law which requires California architects to complete five hours of continuing education supporting zero net carbon design (ZNCD). This applies to all license renewals on or after January 1, 2023.
On December 8, President Biden announced a federal sustainability executive order to transform “how we build, buy, and manage electricity, vehicles, buildings, and other operations to be clean and sustainable.” This executive order outlines the goals to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Since the building sector is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, this executive order will focus on clean energy and procurement of building materials in existing and new federal buildings. The two most notable goals are:
Many states and municipalities are setting their own net-zero goals. For example, Massachusetts commits to net-zero emissions by 2050. The state published the 2050 Decarbonization Roadmap to guide municipalities in meeting the 2050 goal. In addition, large cities have their own plans. Boston commits to all large buildings being net zero by 2050. Cities like New York and DC have similar goals. For Boston, large buildings account for 4% of the city’s structures but 60% of the city’s carbon emissions.
For those in the construction industry, designing and building a zero-emissions project can seem overwhelming. In the last 18-months, we’ve seen numerous publications that outline goals and processes to reach net-zero emissions from worldwide, national, state, and municipal organizations. It’s overwhelming. Where do we begin?
I found one resource that helped me understand what it means to be net-zero emissions: The Decarbonization Practice Guide – A Zero Carbon Future for the Built Environment. This is the first of four installments produced by the William Worthen Foundation. What I like about this resource is that it begins with the why and how of decarbonization in building design.
Following are few nuggets that helped me:
Why should we work towards net-zero? Each year, we see an increase in extreme weather events as a result of climate change. Reducing GHG emissions will help avoid increased disaster mitigation and reduce healthcare and rebuilding costs. Most importantly, meeting net-zero goals will contribute to the health and welfare of people today and in the future.
Zero-Emissions Building is a building that produces enough on-site renewable energy (i.e. solar) to offset 100% of site energy use.
Electrification is the solution to reach zero-emissions. The building uses electricity generated from 100% renewable-energy sources for all building operations. This means the elimination of natural gas as an energy source. Incorporate heat-pumps for HVAC, high-efficiency LED lighting, and induction cooktops. Electrification leads to decarbonization.
Operational Carbon is the carbon emissions generated from the operation of a building.
Embodied Carbon: The amount of energy used in the entire life cycle of a building product including energy used in raw-materials extraction, transportation, manufacturing, installation, operation, and end-of-life disposal or recycle. Specify products from transparent manufacturers who provide supporting documents such a life cycle analysis (LCA) and Environmental Product Declaration (EPD).
In addition to the decarbonization guide, this web page from AIA California provides great information on what you can do now.
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