Lendlease unveiled a new protocol to monitor, measure, and disclose Scope 3 carbon emissions and called on built environment industry leaders to tackle this challenge.
Scope 3 emissions are indirect emissions that occur in an organization’s value chain and often make up the majority of an organization’s carbon footprint. Lendlease says Scope 3 emissions comprise about 90% of its global carbon footprint.
Scope 3 emissions data, embedded in carbon-intensive materials such as steel, cement, aluminum, and glass, are especially challenging to track and measure. They have multiple source points and different levels of transparency, completeness, and assurance. Methods and standards for their calculation are inconsistent, and there is no standardized data exchange for them.
Lendlease is driving to change that with its new protocol that includes a Scope 3 Reporting Assessment Tool with more than 50 possible subcategories.
“We want the protocol to spark conversation and engagement across our sector, to help drive to a consensus on how to account for and report on Scope 3 emissions,” said Cate Harris, group head of sustainability. “If we can achieve this, then we can collaborate as an industry to solve the two big systemic challenges: the decarbonization of harder to abate materials, and the digitization and sharing of Scope 3 emissions data.”
Related Stories
| Nov 16, 2012
Green building councils in 62 countries expect 60% of their work to be green by 2015
More than half of the respondents to a survey of members of the Green Building Council in 62 countries expect green projects to comprise 60% of their work by 2015.
| Nov 16, 2012
Voters approve fewer construction ballot measures in 2012 than in 2008
Voters passed fewer ballot measures related to construction projects this year than they did in 2008, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America.
| Nov 9, 2012
New ANSI/BIFMA standard adds point for lower formaldehyde emissions
The ANSI/BIFMA e3-2012 Furniture Sustainability Standard now includes an additional point for furniture products that meet a new, lower formaldehyde emissions limit.
| Nov 9, 2012
Higher bar on LEED may not be harder to reach
The U.S. Green Building Council expects to substantially revise LEED next year, requiring builders beginning in 2015 to take new and more-detailed steps to get buildings certified.
| Nov 9, 2012
CSI’s sustainability practice group offers webinar on EPA's WaterSense Program
The Construction Specification Institute’s sustainability practice group is offering a webinar Nov. 20 on EPA’s WaterSense Program, featuring Lynn Gilleland, drinking water specialist with EPA’s New England office.
| Nov 9, 2012
Mayor in Calif. wants to expedite permits for $1B worth of projects
The mayor of San Jose, Calif., plans to issue new construction permits worth an estimated $1 billion in the next six months to spur job creation and create revenue for the city.
| Nov 9, 2012
Jury awards N.Y. roofer $2 million for injuries after construction site fall
A roofing worker from Cortland County, N.Y., has been awarded $2 million in damages due to the injuries he sustained from a 60-foot fall at a dormitory construction site.
| Oct 31, 2012
Investigators look into crane severely damaged by Sandy in Manhattan
Investigators are examining a construction crane collapse atop a $1.5 billion luxury high-rise in midtown Manhattan due to high winds during Hurricane Sandy.
