#BuildingLife – Construction and built environment emissions must be addressed together to achieve carbon neutrality

The housing and the climate crisis are two of the main challenges facing our society. Based on population growth projections, half a million homes must be built in Ireland by 2040. Last summer, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s sixth assessment report highlighted once again that climate change was widespread, rapid, and intensifying.

The scientists who authored the report called for strong, quick and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to stabilise the climate. This requires all sectors of the economy to fully decarbonise by 2050. As national carbon budgets are being considered in the Oireachtas, this article looks at the current impact of the built environment and construction on Ireland’s emissions and the likely impact of our ambitious construction and retrofit programmes on these emissions.