A Comparative Greenhouse Gas Analysis of Energy Efficiency Renovation and New Construction in a Residential Area–A Preliminary Study

摘要: Buildings are accountable for nearly half of the global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Building sector is also considered to have the most economical potential for climate change mitigation. Several cities in Finland consider construction of new energy efficient residential areas as one strategy to reach even the short-and mid-term climate change mitigation goals of the future. Replacing existing residential areas that are in poor shape with new buildings is often considered as an economically more feasible option than renovating these areas. However, new construction projects cause significant GHG emissions in a short time period and the benefits of the improved energy efficiency realize only after several decades. Furthermore, energy efficiency improvements may also be implemented in the old buildings during the renovation process in an economically sustainable manner. Thus, legislation and regulation officials may have too little knowledge at their disposal in decision-making.The study evaluates the GHG emissions of the renovation process of an existing suburban building and compares it to a recent construction project of a residential area with similar attributes. The research method of the study is life cycle assessment that takes the indirect emissions of the supply chains into account besides the direct emissions. The case study screens whether renovating existing suburban areas is a better way to promote climate change mitigation than constructing new ones. The results of the study indicate that renovating the current building stock may be ecologically more sustainable than replacing it with new buildings. The results and …