Op-Ed: Embodied Carbon—Regulating to Reduce

Toronto Paramedic Services Multi-Function Station Interior. Courtesy Diamond Schmitt Architects

As Denmark has recently tightened its standards for new construction with the aim of reducing embodied carbon, what lessons can Canada draw from this experience?

In 2023, the Danish Building Code made life-cycle assessment (LCA) mandatory for all new buildings over their first fifty years, initially capping CO₂ emissions for buildings larger than 1,000 m² at 12 kg/m²/year.

Since July 1 of last year...