A pilot study of A+C method for reducing GHG emissions in construction industry

Carbon dioxide emissions (CO₂e) and other greenhouse gases (GHG) have been blamed for global warming, and more and more unforeseeable natural disasters that have put human beings in great danger. Reduction of CO₂e is considered one of the most important issues of global politics in the next decade. The construction industry has long been the major contributor of CO₂e and other GHG due to the production of major construction materials and the performance of prevailing construction processes. Without an effective and efficient approach to reduce the GHG emissions, not only deteriorate the environment, but also increase potential costs (and thus decrease the productivity) of the construction industry itself. To improve the abovementioned situation, this paper proposes an A (construction cost) + C (carbon emission) method that mimics the concept of traditional A+B (price-time bi-parameter) procurement method and follows the GHG Inventory standards. The theoretical background of A+C method is development and presented in details. A simple highway viaduct construction project was selected as a case study to demonstrate the application of the proposed A+C method. Two different construction methods, including the shoring advancement method and full span supporting method are considered for calculation of the TCB. Standard template forms are proposed for calculation the construction costs and CO₂e value of the selected construction project. Issues regarding to the applicability and potential impacts of the proposed method are addressed and discussed.