Embodied Carbon

Embodied carbon is the total amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the extraction, processing, manufacturing, transport and installation of the materials in a product or piece of infrastructure before it is put into use, together with the emissions from its maintenance and end of life. It is particularly relevant in sectors such as construction, where, as operational energy becomes cleaner, embodied carbon accounts for a growing share of a building's whole-life emissions.

It is the counterpart of operational carbon (the emissions from energy and water used while a building or product is in service) and is usually quantified through life cycle assessment.

Scope of embodied carbon

• Upfront carbon: pre-use emissions (modules A1 to A5 under EN 15978).
• Use-stage embodied carbon: replacements, repair and refurbishment of materials (modules B1 to B5).
• End-of-life carbon: demolition, transport, recycling or landfill (modules C1 to C4).

Calculation methods

• Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in line with ISO 14044 and EN 15804.
• Databases: Ecoinvent, the ICE database and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs).
• Construction tools: dedicated whole-life-carbon software such as One Click LCA, Athena and Tally.

Key indicators

• kg CO2e per m2 of floor area (buildings).
• kg CO2e per tonne of material (steel, concrete, glass).
• Percentage reduction against a baseline, as used in schemes such as LEED and BREEAM.

Regulations and standards

• National regulations are starting to limit embodied carbon, for example France's RE2020 environmental regulation and the Netherlands' MPG building material performance requirement.
• EN 15978: assessment of the environmental performance of buildings.
• Industry targets such as the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge set whole-life and embodied-carbon intensity goals for buildings.

Relationship to other concepts

• Operational carbon: emissions during the use phase; embodied carbon instead covers the pre-use and end-of-life stages.
• Product decarbonisation and ecodesign: strategies aimed at minimising embodied emissions from the design stage.

Reducing embodied carbon is essential for achieving climate neutrality, especially in material-intensive sectors, because these emissions are locked in early and cannot be mitigated later. At Manglai we help companies measure their carbon footprint and prepare their sustainability reporting. Discover how Manglai can help you.