Presentation by Peter Moonen—Sustainability Coordinator, Woodworks BC/Canadian Wood Council—to the Private Forest Landowners Association at their 18th annual forestry conference in Nanaimo, BC on June 20th, 2103.

1. PFLA – Nanaimo, B.C.
June 20, 2013
Codes Carbon and
Construction
Opportunities for Wood in the 21st Century

2. Represents Over 1200 Manufacturers
Canadian Wood Council

7. Performance Based Code?
If a builder builds a house for someone, and does
not construct it properly, and the house which he
built falls in and kills its owner, then that builder
shall be put to death.
If it kills the son of the owner, the son of that
builder shall be put to death.
• Kept builders honest
• Probably stifled innovation
• Not applicable to their own buildings

8. Building
Code
History
London
1666

9. Building
Code
History
Chicago
1871
Chicago:
corner
of
Dearborn
and
Monroe
a2er
the
devasta6ng
Great
Fire.

10. Building
Code
History
• London
-­‐
1666
• Chicago
-­‐-­‐
1871
– Codes
started
addressing
risks
of
one
building
on
another
– Density
driven
– Light,
ven@la@on,
fire
escapes,
water
supply,
sanitary,
drainage,
stairs,
railings
– Health
&
Safety

11. Building
Codes
2008
&
Beyond

12. Green?
High
Performance?
Prairie
Sod
House,
circa
1909

13. Legisla@on

14. Legisla@on/Policies
• IGCC
• UNEP
/SBCI
Common
Carbon
Metric
• ASHRAE
189.1
2009
• European
Resource
Commission
–
German
Material
evalua@on
• UNECE
Resolu@on
Carbon
Tax
• Energy
Policies
• Material
preference
/
Impacts
Policies
– Quebec
and
B.C.
– France,
Japan
&
New
Zealand
– LCA
/
EPD
requirement
in
EU
• Code
changes
-­‐
Light
Frame
Construc@on
• Carbon
Footprint
reduc@on
– London,
U.K.
–
10%
reduc@on
• Ra@ng
Tool
achievement

15. Carbon

18. Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer
Gases in the atmosphere that
contribute to elevated atmospheric
temperature and global climate.

19. The Carbon Issue
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

20. The Carbon Cycle/
The Carbon Issue
Fossil vs. Atmospheric Carbon
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

21. Greenhouse Gases (GHG’s)
• Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
• Methane (CH4)
• Nitrous Oxide (N2O)
• HFCs
• CFCs
• Sulfur hexafluoride
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

22. The Heat Trapping Efficiency of Various
Greenhouse Gases is Not Equal
Compound
Heat Trapping
Efficiency Compared
to Carbon Dioxide
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 1
Methane (CH4) 23X
Nitrous oxide (N2O) 296X
HFCs 120-12,000X
CFCs 5,700-11,900X
Sulfur hexafluoride 22,200X
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

23. CO2
Concentra@on
peak
in
2009
390
ppm
39%
above
pre-­‐
industrial
Increase
1990-­‐2000
~3.2
Gt
C/year
2000-­‐2012
4.1
Gt
C/yr
May 10, 2013
400 ppm – first time
in 2 Million years!

24. Contributors to Global Warming
Methane
Chlorofluorocarbons
Carbon Dioxide
Nitrous
Oxide
Ozone
CO2e
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

25. Materials matter now – not just in 2030, 2050 or beyond

26. Sequestered Carbon
Sequestered
millions of
years ago
Sequestered,
released, and
re-sequestered
as part of
ongoing carbon
cycle.
Fossil
Carbon
Atmospheric
Carbon
Courtesy
Dr.
Jim
Bowyer

27. Photosynthesis SUN
(C5 H10 O5)n
CO2
H2O
O2
Sugars
How
CO2
Sequestra6on
Occurs

28. Why
wood?
• Carbon
neutral
End
of
tree
life
Carbon
fixa@on
in
trees
through
photosynthesis
Carbon
in
soil
and
biomass
Atmospheric
carbon
Atmospheric
carbon
Sunlight
H2O
O2
Sink

29. Why
Wood?
• Avoids
CO2
• Strong
• Lightweight
• Flexible
• Diverse
• AOrac6ve
• Easy
to
Use
• Available
• Inexpensive
• Versa6le
• Carbon
Sink
• Renewable
• Recyclable
• Reusable
• Organic
• Cleans
Air
• Cleans
Water
• Provides
O2
• Biodegradable
• Habitat
Source
If
Not
Wood,
what?

30. Wood
and
Forest
Carbon
101
• 50%
of
the
dry
weight
of
wood
is
carbon.
• 1
m3
of
Douglas
Fir
contains
0.225
tons
of
carbon
• If
burned
releases
~
1
ton
of
CO2
• C
x
3.7
=
CO2
• C
in
1
m3
of
Douglas
Fir
=
emissions
from
~325
litres
of
gasoline.

31. Life
Cycle
Analysis/Assessment

32. Green
design
choices
are
complex

33. Understanding
the
full
environmental
impact

34. Athena
Impact
Es@mator

35. Metrics
Environmental Impact Category Impact Indicator
Global warming potential (GWP) Carbon dioxide (CO2) eq.
Acidification potential Hydrogen ion [H+] eq.
Eutrophication potential Nitrogen (N) eq.
Fossil fuel depletion Surplus gigajoules (GJ)
Water intake Litres (L)
Criteria air pollutants Disability-adjusted-life-years (DALYs)
Ecological toxicity 2,4-dichlorophenoxy-acetic acid (2,4-D) eq.
Human health; non-carcinogenic Toluene (C7H8) eq.
Human health; carcinogenic Benzene (C6H6) eq.
Ozone depletion Chlorofluorocarbon-11 (CFC-11) eq.
Smog formation potential Nitrogen oxides (NOx) eq.
Energy Accounting Indicator
Embodied energy; renewable & non-renewable Terajoules (TJ)
Embodied energy; feedstock & process Terajoules (TJ)
Source: Robertson, A.B. A COMPARATIVE LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF MID-RISE OFFICE BUILDING
CONSTRUCTION ALTERNATIVES: LAMINATED TIMBER OR REINFORCED CONCRETE

36. Elements
of
Forest
Products
Carbon
Footprint
1. Ecosystem
Carbon
2. Product
Carbon
Sequestra@on
3. Manufacturing
Plant
GHGs
4. Wood
Produc@on
GHG
5. GHG
associated
with
producing
other
raw
materials/fuels
6. GHG
associated
with
purchased
energy
7. Transporta@on
GHG
8. Product
Use
GHG
9. End
of
Life
GHG
10. Avoided
Emissions

37. LCA
Nega@ve
Carbon
Footprints
Using LCA, we can calculate carbon balances for wood products.
CO2 removal
The C is used to
make wood
The C balance here
is negative
C is
transferred
to products
CO2 emissions due
to harvesting,
manufacturing,
transportation
Net C is negative: more C is in the
product than was emitted to atmosphere
in making the product
-
-
+

38. Cross
Laminated
Timber
Impacts
Discovery Place - Building 12 (Bunting Coady Architects, 2007)
• 14,000 m2 (153,207 ft2),
• five-storey,
• concrete-framed structure,
• Proposed for Burnaby, B.C.

39. Carbon
Dioxide
Equivalent
GWP of Concrete and Timber Building Design Alternatives
Source: Robertson, A.B. A COMPARATIVE LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF MID-RISE OFFICE BUILDING
CONSTRUCTION ALTERNATIVES: LAMINATED TIMBER OR REINFORCED CONCRETE

40. Life
cycle
assessment
shows
wood
is
a
good
choice

41. Material
Net Carbon Emissions
(kg C/metric ton)
Framing lumber 33
Medium density fiberboard
(virgin fiber)
60
Brick 88
Glass 154
Recycled steel (100% from
scrap)
220
Concrete 265
Concrete block 291
Recycled aluminum (100%
recycled content)
309
Steel (virgin) 694
Plastic 2,502
Aluminum (virgin) 4,532
1/ Values are based on life cycle assessment and include gathering and
processing of raw materials, primary and secondary processing, and
transportation.
2/ Source: USEPA (2006).
Net Carbon Emissions in Producing a Tonne1,2 of:

42. A
closer
look
at
recycled
content
25% recycled
100% recycled

43. Net Product Life Carbon Emissions
-1000
-800
-600
-400
-200
0
200
400
600
800
CO2:Kg/cubicmeterwoodeq.
includes carbon
stored in product
no
product
carbon to
store
KD
Lumber Plywood
OSB
Concrete
floor area eq.

45. Embodied
energy,
typical
house

46. Greenhouse
gas
emissions
due
to
manufacturing
Carbon Credits
Due to avoided
emissions?

47. Carbon Storage in Structures
Equals the CO2
generated from
driving a car for 5
years
An average wood
frame home stores ~
30 tonnes of carbon =

48. Case
Study
Examples
-­‐-­‐
Carbon

49. Six story structure (Five stories of wood over
podium slab). Combined residential/commercial.
• 140 condo units
• 14,000 ft2 street level
commercial
• 20,000 ft2 library
• Underground parking

50. Volume of wood used 2,927 m3
Carbon sequestered
and stored (CO2e) 2,124 metric tons
Avoided greenhouse
gases (CO2e) 4,520 metric tons
Total potential carbon
benefit (CO2e) 6,645 metric tons

51. ARCHITECTS:
Cannon
Design
STRUCTURAL
ENGINEERS:
Fast
+
Epp
Structural
Engineers
Richmond
Olympic
Oval,
Richmond,
B.C.

52. ARCHITECTS:
Cannon
Design
STRUCTURAL
ENGINEERS:
Fast
+
Epp
Structural
Engineers
Richmond
Olympic
Oval,
Richmond,
B.C.

53.
Richmond
Olympic
Oval,
Richmond,
B.C.

54. Volume of wood used 4,755 m3
Carbon sequestered
and stored (CO2e) 3,771 metric tons
Avoided greenhouse
gases (CO2e) 8,021 metric tons
Total potential carbon
benefit (CO2e) 11,792 metric tons

55. ~ 8,000+ mt CO2e
sequestered
~ 17,500 mt CO2e
avoided

56. • Honeycomb
structure
• Rotated
plans
• Load-­‐bearing
walls,
floors
and
cores
• Tallest
@mber
building
in
the
world
• Uses
a
plaiorm
configura@on,
each
floor
set
on
the
walls
underneath
with
joints
secured
by
screws
and
angle
plates.
• The
ground
floor
is
made
from
cast
concrete
with
a
short
pile
founda@on.
• Public/
private
partnership
– 19
private
apartments,
– 10
social
housing
units,
and
– a
residents
office.
Stadthaus Building, London
(Murray Grove)

57. Exterior
cladding

Mixture
of
wood
pulp
and
cement
@le;
•
Includes
5,000
individual
panels
in
a
design
to
mimic
the
shadows
on
the
site,
•
Creates
texture
without
the
use
of
brick.
Stadthaus Building, London
(Murray Grove)

58. Stadthaus Building, London
(Murray Grove)

59. Stadthaus Building, London
(Murray Grove)

60. Murray
Grove
Mid-­‐rise
• CO2
store
saves
300,000
kg
of
carbon
• Equivalent
to
210
years
of
10%
reduc@on
• (London
code)
• 9
stories
9
wks
•
Overall
time
saving
of
22
weeks
Total
construc6on
waste?
–
1/2
wheel
barrow
load
/wk

61. Stadthaus Building, London
Volume of wood used 950 m3
Carbon sequestered
and stored (CO2e) 760 metric tons
Avoided greenhouse
gases (CO2e) 320 metric tons
Total potential carbon
benefit (CO2e) 1,080 metric tons

62. Forest, Product, Emissions, Displacement & Substitution Carbon by Component
-100
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020
2025
2030
2035
2040
2045
2050
2055
2060
2065
2070
2075
2080
2085
2090
2095
2100
2105
2110
2115
2120
2125
2130
2135
2140
2145
2150
2155
2160
2165
Year
MetricTonsPerHectare
Stem Root Crown Litter Dead Chips Lumber HarvEmis ManufEmis Displacement Substitution
Forest
with Products
with Substitution
Forest, Product and Substitution Pools
(concrete frame vs wood)

64.
“In
the
long-­‐term,
a
sustainable
forest
management
strategy
aimed
at
maintaining
or
increasing
forest
carbon
stocks,
while
producing
an
annual
sustained
yield
of
Gmber,
will
generate
the
largest
sustained
miGgaGon
benefit”.
IPCC
4th
Assessment
Report,
November,
2007,
(Nabuurs
et
al.)
From
the
Co-­‐Recipients
of
the
2007
Nobel
Peace
Prize…

65. Environmental
Product
Declara@ons
(EPD)

66. EPDs
are
the
next
genera@on
of
eco-­‐labels

67.  Confusing for
customers
 Frustrating for
suppliers.
 May lack transparency
 Difficult to compare
 May be single attribute
 Rarely based on LCA

68. 1. Third-party certifications
– A “seal of approval”, usually involves a logo.
Examples: Green Seal, EcoLogo, Blue Angel,
Energy Star, FSC.
2. Self-declarations
– E.g. “100% recycled”; “biodegradable;”
“compostable”.
3. Environmental product declarations
– Not a certification; a simple statement of footprint
facts.

69. 69
• Transparent, credible,
comparable labels allow
purchasers to make
informed selections.
• Non-judgemental.
• Reduce “greenwash” in the
market place.
Environmental Product Declarations, or EPDs, are an
environmental version of a food label. EPDs are based on
LCA data, are 3rd-party verified, address multiple criteria and
are put together following international protocols.

70. EPD Example: Egger OSB
• 4-page EPD

71. EPD Example: Western red cedar
products
• 10-page EPD

72. • Voluntary – For now. May become trade barrier.
• Mandatory in France for high-volume consumer goods
• Germany requires impact evaluation for buildings
• Japan and Taiwan moving in that direction.
• Sweden, Italy, UK, Japan, Korea, China and Australia already
have most or all components of an EPD infrastructure in place.
• Hundreds (thousands?) of EPDs worldwide have been produced.
• US is partly there with a national database and discussion about
national standards.
• Environmental preferential purchasing (EPP) policies (popular in
Europe and the US) would likely adopt an EPD basis when
ready.

73. Endearing
Buildings
Endure
• Horyuji
("Temple
of
the
Flourishing
Law")
• Burnt
in
670
and
rebuilt-­‐
1300+
yrs.
old
• 32.5m-­‐tall
Five-­‐Story
Pagoda
(Goju-­‐no-­‐
to)
-­‐
the
oldest
five-­‐storied
pagoda
in
Japan
• Buddhist
temple
built
on
the
ruins
of
a
building
of
607;
• Work
of
Buddhist
carpenters
from
the
Korean
kingdom
of
Paekche