ABSTRACT
Buildings are one of the world’s principal users of energy and materials, accounting for about 40 percent of all energy used in the United States. 1 Building construction consumes 25 percent of the world’s wood harvest, and demolition of built structures accounts for 44 percent of landfill waste. 2 Together, building construction, heating, and cooling account for about half of carbon dioxide emissions in the United Kingdom; 3 the figure is probably similar in other countries.
