Constraints to delivering low carbon buildings in high-rise high-density cities

Expected practical improvements in delivering low carbon buildings in high-rise high-density cities are still lagging behind those needed to meet global carbon reduction targets. This indicates that there could be a number of commonly prevalent constraints that hinder the delivery of low carbon buildings. Therefore, this paper aims to systematically identify and explore these constraints. The presented outcomes are based on a systematic literature review of published journal papers from 2001 to 2020 and the findings from a questionnaire survey covering seven cities in five contexts; namely, UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi), Qatar (Doha), Australia (Melbourne and Sydney), Singapore and Hong Kong. The systematic review led to the identification of 71 common constraints under 8 categories: namely, 'financial', 'market structure and supplies', 'policy and regulatory', 'knowledge, awareness and information', 'workforce and skills', 'technological', 'behavioural, social and cultural', and 'geographical and environmental'. While identifying the constraints common to the contexts of surveyed cities, the paper also presents the constraints specific to each context. The findings should assist decision making at both policy and project levels to accelerate the delivery of low carbon buildings by addressing and ameliorating the common constraints impeding their development in high-rise high-density cities.