New embodied carbon rules for large London projects

This article was originally published in issue 37 of Passive House Plus magazine. Want immediate access to all back issues and exclusive extra content? Click here to subscribe for as little as €10, or click here to receive the next issue free of charge

Under the new plan, all residential developments of more than 150 units or over 30 metres in height, or commercial buildings covering more than 2,500 square metres floor area, face new LCA rules. The plan requires all referable planning applications to calculate the whole life carbon emissions of the project and demonstrate actions to reduce it. This must be done in three stages: at pre-planning an outline of the expected emissions of the project must be submitted, at planning stage applicants must submit a whole life carbon assessment, while carbon emissions must also be reported post-occupancy.

The new London Plan also requires a circular economy statement to be submitted with each referable project. Proposals must set out how three core principles will be achieved: sustainable sourcing of materials and resource efficiency, designing for elimination of waste and ease of maintenance, and the sustainable management of any waste that does arise. The plan says projects should be designed for easy maintenance, accessibility, longevity, adaptability and disassembly.

Speaking to Passive House Plus, Panu Pasanen, chief executive of Bionova, said the company’s One Click LCA software offers the tools to meet these requirements.

“When it comes to the whole life carbon requirements, One Click LCA can support you on all stages of the submission from pre-application stage to post-construction,” Pasanen said. “One Click LCA’s carbon designer tool allows you to compare the carbon footprint of building types at design stage, while at planning stage our Building LCA software provides reliable, powerful and user-friendly LCA based on RICS guidance and tailored to GLA reporting requirements. One Click LCA also facilitates post-occupancy assessment. “For your circular economy statement, One Click LCA’s building circularity tool offers mass-based assessment of building materials, and helps you to calculate the amount of reused and recycled materials and determine end of life processes and the benefits to designing for adaptability and disassembly,” Pasanen said.

“The GLA guidance requires that assessments should be carried out using a nationally recognised assessment methodology and One Click LCA is proud to be one of the tools approved by GLA.”

For more information see www.oneclicklca.com.