ABSTRACT
The previous chapter presented an overview of regulation and incentives for LZC buildings. While the focus of Chapter 9 was on those schemes creating an enabling environment for low/ zero carbon energy for use in buildings, this chapter turns its attention to built environment focused tools and systems that aim to improve the carbon efficiency of building fabric as well as the urban context in which buildings are situated. The chapter first focuses on assessment systems for carbon in buildings as a ‘product’ (i.e. the building fabric and its operational energy requirements), before presenting tools and assessment systems for buildings embedded in a ‘system’ (i.e. urban carbon assessment incorporating the assessment of emissions from all the activities across the urban area, including buildings’ energy use, industrial processes and transportation). Readers are referred to Chapter 8 for details on the assessment of carbon embodied in buildings, from the extraction of raw materials and manufacturing through to its use and final reuse, recycling or disposal.
