Toller, S; Carlsson, A; Wadeskog, A; Miliutenko, S and Finnveden, G (2013) Indicators for environmental monitoring of the Swedish building and real estate management sector. Building Research & Information, 41(2), pp. 146-155. ISSN 0961-3218
Abstract
In order to assess the environmental impact of the Swedish building and property (real estate) management sector, a new top-down life cycle assessment (LCA) method was used which was based on input-output analysis using national statistical data. Six indicators were developed as suitable for environmental monitoring of the sector: energy use; emissions of greenhouse gases; emissions of nitrogen oxides; emissions of particulates; use of hazardous chemical products; and generation of waste. These indicators were then used to describe the environmental performance of the sector over a 15-year period in order to monitor change and improvement. The use of energy and emissions to air can be effectively followed in time-series. These indicators could be used to create incentives to evaluate regularly improvement work and to inform policy and practice. For greenhouse gas emissions, a trend was identified for space heating to become less important than construction and management towards the end of the period studied, most likely due to a transition from fossil fuels to renewable fuels for heat production. Key implications will be on the selection of building materials, the construction process and the extension of building longevity.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | building and real estate management; climate change; environmental indicators; environmental monitoring; input-output analysis; life cycle assessment; Sweden |
| Index terms: | input-output analysis, energy use, climate change, greenhouse gas, greenhouse gas emission, real estate, construction process, environmental impact, space heating, building material, fossil fuel, environmental monitoring, life cycle assessment, particulate, Sweden, environmental performance |
| Subjects: | environmental health, building construction, Geography, sustainability assessment, data analysis and analytics, energy systems, building materials, real estate economics, environmental impact, climate science, mechanical systems |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Geographical Context, Engineering Principles, Sustainability, Design Practice, Urban Studies, Site Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here