Embodied Carbon Takes Center Stage

Climate change is reshaping how industries operate, and construction is no exception. As architects, builders and developers race to reduce their environmental impact, they’re discovering that the biggest opportunities for change happen before a single wall goes up. The materials you choose and how you build with them can make all the difference.

The State of Sustainability in Construction

The built environment refers to the human-made structures where people live, work and play, from sports centers to universities. It accounts for 39% of all annual carbon emissions in the world. Architects, construction professionals and real estate developers want to change that.

For years, decarbonization efforts centered on the emissions generated from powering, heating and cooling a building, known as operational carbon. However, the construction industry has shifted focus to life cycle carbon accounting.

Now, real estate developers and construction professionals are considering the roles material sourcing, construction methods and building maintenance play.

A construction project’s impact on the environment is decided long before builders break ground. The greenhouse gas emissions that come from manufacturing, transporting and installing building materials are called embodied carbon, which is locked in during the planning and design phase.

Shifting Focus to Life Cycle Carbon Accounting

Houses, offices and stores built today should still be standing decades from now, but the climate may change significantly by then, making them less resilient and efficient. This means they may fail or get torn down before the end of their useful life, creating unnecessary waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

Architects, builders and suppliers need to think decades ahead to decarbonize a building across its entire life cycle. That’s why they need to use low-carbon construction materials and methods.

Life cycle carbon accounting is a systematic method for measuring something’s overall environmental impact. It looks at everything from raw material sourcing to the disposal of demolition materials. By providing a data-backed, standardized method for estimating the carbon impact of a construction project, it supports informed decision-making.

Low-Carbon Solutions Are Stealing the Spotlight

Market researchers estimate that the green building material market will reach $1,238.6 billion in 2033, up from $545.6 billion in 2026. This growth represents an industry-wide shift toward environmentally responsible construction materials and methods.

Nearly 40% of all energy-related carbon emissions come from construction materials and building operations, so it stands to reason that one strong way to reduce this percentage is to use prefabricated modular buildings.

Prefabs shorten build times and minimize on-site waste, lowering embodied emissions. These structures meet the same standards and codes as traditional builds but are more energy and resource-efficient.

Factory-built construction allows for better quality control. When modules are assembled indoors, builders can precisely measure and cut materials, significantly reducing waste compared to traditional jobsites, where weather, theft and miscuts lead to substantial material loss.

Plus, modular buildings can be designed for disassembly, meaning components can be reused or relocated at the end of the structure’s life rather than ending up in a landfill.

Installation speed matters for sustainability, too. While traditional construction projects can take months or years, prefabricated modules arrive largely complete and can be installed in weeks.

This shortened timeline means less energy spent on operations, fewer worker commutes and reduced disruption to surrounding areas.

Innovations Reducing Waste and Emissions

Professionals have to consider material composition. Most buildings use wood harvested from live, mature trees. At scale, this process is often unsustainable. For instance, hardwood, which is often used for flooring, cabinetry and trim, takes 30 years to mature, making it difficult to harvest responsibly.

Even if companies immediately plant new trees after clear-cutting an old-growth forest, the saplings won’t remove nearly as much carbon from the atmosphere as mature trees.

Mass timber is an innovative alternative. When sustainably sourced, it produces far less carbon throughout its life cycle than concrete and steel. Contractors can also construct buildings from mass timber much faster than from concrete and steel.

Still, steel is the world’s most widely used construction material. Unfortunately, it requires a ton of energy to produce. Thankfully, the solution is surprisingly simple. Builders can use recycled steel instead, which is primarily made from scrap steel rather than virgin materials.

This one change could reduce the heat energy required to produce steel by up to 75%, making projects much more sustainable.

Cement is another widely used material. As such, it accounts for around 8% of all carbon dioxide emissions. For centuries, it has been made by superheating limestone to around 2,550° Fahrenheit — a process that often involves burning fossil fuel. Several startups are perfecting an emissions-free alternative.

Some use renewable electricity instead of heat, while others swap limestone for eco-friendly compounds. A handful of methods meet the standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials, now known as ASTM International.

How Policy and Procurement Impact Projects

Standards and rules regulating air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation change often and typically grow increasingly strict over time. By building structures that far surpass today’s standards, the construction industry can remain ahead of these changes for years, if not decades, to come.

As of 2025, over 100 nations have agreed to be carbon neutral, which involves reducing or offsetting emissions to achieve a net-zero release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. More may soon follow, underscoring the importance of a forward-looking approach to sustainable construction methods.

Company-level policy changes are equally important. For instance, managers can make predemolition material audits mandatory. These audits can help construction professionals identify salvageable materials, preventing perfectly good plumbing fixtures, hardwood planks and doors from ending up in the landfill.

When organizations prioritize low-carbon materials in procurement, they create demand for innovations like recycled steel, mass timber and prefabricated modules. They can make a difference by requiring suppliers to provide environmental product declarations that detail embodied carbon.

This change would make it easier to compare options and choose materials that align with sustainability goals.

Bettering Tomorrow’s Built Environment

If architects, building material suppliers, general contractors and real estate developers work together, they could significantly reduce the built environment’s carbon emissions. Every bit of progress brings people closer to a net-zero world.