Carbon Footprints!
Unveiling the most daunting terminology used in the 21st century, carbon footprints have evolved frightening for a generation, organization, and any entity associated with this horizon with its chilling reality. Memorizing the names of those greenhouse gases surrounding home earth is not impossible with its rapid escalation.
Highlighting the definition of the 2011 article, “carbon footprint is a measure of the total amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) emissions of a defined population, system or activity, considering all relevant sources, sinks, and storage within the spatial and temporal boundary of the population, system or activity of interest, calculated as carbon dioxide equivalent using the relevant 100-year global warming potential( A Wright, et al,61-72). The hazards from the carbon footprints are obvious; destructive, incurable, and challenging which are catastrophic. The persistent query always lingered backstage concerning the origins. This leads to the hands steering towards buildings, structures, urban landscapes, rural areas, or the entirety of our nation.
Buildings and structures are pivotal in the substantial contribution to worldwide carbon emissions. As per the findings of the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), this sector shoulders a significant responsibility accounting for 40% of the global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions and 15% of the overall greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale. Stating facts, 28% of the operational emissions are the energy essential for heating, cooling, and powering, and the remaining percentile is from the material and construction. The escalating percentage of disorderly urban development, marked by inadequate design methodologies, is accountable for the increasing menace of rising carbon footprints.
Amidst several factors stirring the status of carbon emissions, the pivotal revelation emerges: the construction industry, spearheading as the foremost consumer of resources and raw materials, is single handedly leading the relay. This leads us to the research by Mandip Bhandari and Kamal Bd. Thapa from IOE Pulchowk Campus with the topic of “Carbon Emission from Building in Overall Life Cycle”. Following the 2022 research, it was revealed that the cumulative embodied carbon emissions in the complete life cycle of the building sector amounted to 1444.86 Mt (Bhandari and Thapa). Embodied carbon encompasses emissions linked to the production, transportation, and installation of construction materials. The study identified cement, bricks, and aluminum as the materials with the highest emissions. Additionally, operational carbon emissions from Nepalese buildings are noteworthy. According to a 2021 investigation by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), the residential sector in Nepal accounts for approximately 40% of the nation’s total energy consumption(International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)).
Nepal, experiencing rapid urbanization as one of the swiftly developing nations, anticipates the construction of one million homes within the coming decade. In recent decades, the surge in space demands driven by market forces has led to the design of buildings without accounting for the local climate(Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2011). This disregard has led to heightened energy consumption for heating and cooling purposes, contributing to an overall surge in energy demands amidst Nepal’s escalating urban development.
Furthermore, the utilization of building materials with elevated embodied energy levels is amplifying the carbon footprint within Nepal’s construction sector. The perfect examples of the aftereffects have already started being seen. The headings in Nepali Times such as the delayed monsoon, the air quality of the capital, and the transmission of chronic and communicable diseases ace in share count in social media but lack the attention of authorities. (Awale)
Addressing the central focus at hand, the approach for mitigating these concerns has been keeping hundreds of eyes awake, but what should be done is still behind the limelight. In the construction industry, a myriad of processes unfolds measures initiating from the identification of needs followed by the transformation of these needs into livable structures through meticulous design. Historically, processes related to construction, such as resource extraction and end-of-life disposal, were overlooked and ignored by not only the clients but also by designers, engineers, and contractors. Yet, it is imperative to acknowledge that buildings undergo a lifecycle that leaves a considerable imprint on carbon emissions. Prioritizing sustainable methodologies becomes crucial to diminish our ecological impact, presenting a positive influence on Nepal’s environmental landscape.
The urgency to develop carbon-neutral constructions has given rise to many inventive and sustainable solutions encompassing optimizing resources, enabling 3d printing technologies, recycling materials, integrating nature into urban environments, and propagating new sustainable materials(Tovar). A notable illustration in the state can be reinforced and stabilized rammed earth construction with local materials and an optimum amount of cement which have been fascinating to several clients. Sustainable Future Nepal has already built 50 structures all over the nation with this methodology (Reducing carbon footprint and energy use through rammed earth construction” icimod.org, Sustainable future Nepal).
Numerous methods have been used throughout the decade concerning carbon reduction. Bamboo construction to Hollow Brick construction, green building construction to the use of building automation systems, and energy-efficient HVAC systems. Many renewable sources and carbon-neutral materials are being introduced. These solutions act well and sustain the building up to some context. But reincarnation throughout the whole of Nepal demands a broader aspect. For a fact, Nepal needs a leap towards ECOLOGICAL URBANISM.
Being one of the least urbanized along with the fastest growing country, the urban growth rate of Nepal is assumed to be 68% (United Nations). The fact that a huge part of Nepal’s economy revolves around nature, that is tourism, taking urbanization and nature together should be a prime preference. This directs all of us to the most resulting solution of ecological urbanism which primarily focuses on urban initiatives that ought to be conceived based on a comprehensive understanding of the capabilities and constraints posed by the available natural resources. Ecological urbanism, unlike earlier solutions, diverges by not positioning buildings or architecture as prime factors for the city, but rather by placing landscape/nature as a whole. It defines green spaces being both aesthetic enhancements and functions as genuine engineering components, capable of mitigating, retaining, and treating elements such as rainwater. In the realm of ecological urbanism, the design of urban spaces is intricately intertwined with the inherent attributes of the surrounding natural environment.
Ecological urbanism is given 5 sets of guidelines by Farr to achieve an ideal goal which are mentioned:
- Densification: release of the soil with decreasing displacements,
- Sustainable corridors for travel through a network of public transport
- An ecological neighborhood with diversified commerce, civic areas, and public spaces connected through a road system.
- Proper access to nature such as sports fields, squares, parks, and gardens
- High-performance buildings and green infrastructure with less energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. (Ghisleni)
The primary goal of ecological urbanism links towards the creation of the “artificial ecosystem” for the independent efficiencies and life-saving redundancies of a natural ecosystem where the waste becomes energy (Douglas 2008). Ecological urbanism is an engineering model whose implications largely depend on the generation of the “Sustainable City”. To the path where the urbanization of Nepal is growing unsystematically resulting in harmful environmental and architectural effects, Ecological Urbanism offers liberty. Now, it’s up to us, If we are ready for a reversal !!
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture (SOLAW). Rome, 2011.
A Wright, Laurence, et al. “Carbon footprinting’: towards a universally accepted definition” Carbon Management. 2(1): 61-72. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.4155/cmt.10.39
Awale, Sonia. “Weather warning for climate meeting.”Nepali Times,2019-07-15.https://nepalitimes.com/banner/weather-warning-for-climate-meeting
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Residential Energy Consumption in Nepal: A Status Report. Kathmandu, 2021.
Tovar, Enrique. “How to Reduce the Carbon Footprint Through Architecture? Three Approaches Across the Building Lifecycle.” Arch Daily,2023-10-23. https://www.archdaily.com/1004300/how-to-reduce-the-carbon-footprint-through-architecture-three-approaches-across-the-building-lifecycle?ad_source=search&ad_medium=projects_tab&ad_source=search&ad_medium=search_result_all
Bhandari, Mandip, and Kamal Bd. Thapa. “Carbon Emission from Building in Overall Life Cycle.” IOE Graduate Conference, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2022. https://conference.ioe.edu.np/ioegc10/papers/ioegc-10-137-10179.pdf
Douglas, Ian. “Ecological Urbanism: A New Framework for Planning and Design.” Journal of Urban Planning and Development, vol. 134, no. 3, 2008, pp. 143-150.
Ghisleni, Camila. “What is Ecological Urbanism?”. Arch Daily,2022-03-04. https://www.archdaily.com/977930/what-is-ecological-urbanism?ad_source=search&ad_medium=projects_tab&ad_source=search&ad_medium=search_result_all
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2022 Revision. New York, 2022.
“Reducing carbon footprint and energy use through rammed earth construction” icimod.org, Sustainable future Nepal”, https://www.icimod.org/adaptation-solutions/reducing-carbon-footprint-and-energy-use-through-rammed-earth-construction/.
Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC). Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction 2021. GlobalABC, 2021.
