With increasing demand to reduce the carbon emission of buildings,it is crucial to quantify the life cycle envi-ronmental impact of new buildings,including the environmental impact due to natural hazards,such as earth...With increasing demand to reduce the carbon emission of buildings,it is crucial to quantify the life cycle envi-ronmental impact of new buildings,including the environmental impact due to natural hazards,such as earth-quakes.This study presents a novel comprehensive probabilistic framework to quantify the environmental impact of buildings,including uncertainties in the material extraction and production,transportation,construction,seis-mic exposure and aging(including deterioration),and end-of-life stages.The developed framework is used to quantify the environmental impact of a 3-story residential building located in Vancouver,Canada.The results show that there is a significant variation in the environmental impact of the prototype building in each stage of the life cycle assessment.If the prototype building is hit by the design level earthquake,it is expected that the median environmental impact of the prototype will be further increased by 42%.In addition,by accounting for the probability of occurrence of different earthquakes within a 50-year design life of the prototype building,the earthquake related damage will result in an additional 5%of the initial carbon emission of the building.This shows the importance of including earthquake hazard and deterioration in whole building life cycle assessments.展开更多
For sustainable buildings to become mainstream they must demonstrate not only improved environmental performance but also financial performance,benefiting both end users and investors.The perceived financial constrain...For sustainable buildings to become mainstream they must demonstrate not only improved environmental performance but also financial performance,benefiting both end users and investors.The perceived financial constraints and risks are often major barriers to sustainable design.This paper discusses the application of a new tool that formalizes the traditionally intuitive-based early-stage decision making processes and assesses the potential for creating a financially feasible best-practice sustainable building across a range of environmental,social and economic parameters,using the limited data available at the outset of a project.It considers the total cost of ownership,demonstrating the link between the recurrent and capital costs.A detailed feasibility assessment of those areas where greatest potential for improving environmental and financial performance exists can then be carried out,saving a considerable amount of time,money and effort otherwise spent on looking at all possible strategies for achieving a sustainable outcome.This approach also identifies areas where incorporating environmental strategies might be financially risky,reassuring investors and developers by reducing investment risks.By reducing some of these risks and perceived barriers to sustainable building development,it is hoped that clients and investors will be further encouraged to adopt a more sustainable approach to their building projects.展开更多
文摘With increasing demand to reduce the carbon emission of buildings,it is crucial to quantify the life cycle envi-ronmental impact of new buildings,including the environmental impact due to natural hazards,such as earth-quakes.This study presents a novel comprehensive probabilistic framework to quantify the environmental impact of buildings,including uncertainties in the material extraction and production,transportation,construction,seis-mic exposure and aging(including deterioration),and end-of-life stages.The developed framework is used to quantify the environmental impact of a 3-story residential building located in Vancouver,Canada.The results show that there is a significant variation in the environmental impact of the prototype building in each stage of the life cycle assessment.If the prototype building is hit by the design level earthquake,it is expected that the median environmental impact of the prototype will be further increased by 42%.In addition,by accounting for the probability of occurrence of different earthquakes within a 50-year design life of the prototype building,the earthquake related damage will result in an additional 5%of the initial carbon emission of the building.This shows the importance of including earthquake hazard and deterioration in whole building life cycle assessments.
文摘For sustainable buildings to become mainstream they must demonstrate not only improved environmental performance but also financial performance,benefiting both end users and investors.The perceived financial constraints and risks are often major barriers to sustainable design.This paper discusses the application of a new tool that formalizes the traditionally intuitive-based early-stage decision making processes and assesses the potential for creating a financially feasible best-practice sustainable building across a range of environmental,social and economic parameters,using the limited data available at the outset of a project.It considers the total cost of ownership,demonstrating the link between the recurrent and capital costs.A detailed feasibility assessment of those areas where greatest potential for improving environmental and financial performance exists can then be carried out,saving a considerable amount of time,money and effort otherwise spent on looking at all possible strategies for achieving a sustainable outcome.This approach also identifies areas where incorporating environmental strategies might be financially risky,reassuring investors and developers by reducing investment risks.By reducing some of these risks and perceived barriers to sustainable building development,it is hoped that clients and investors will be further encouraged to adopt a more sustainable approach to their building projects.
