Episode 172 - Whole Life Carbon Assessments (RICS)

This week we will be talking about RICS’s Whole Life Carbon Assessment Standard. This episode content meets PC2 - Clients, Users & Delivery of Services & PC3 - Legal Framework & Processes of the Part 3 Criteria.

Resources from today's episode:

Websites:

• https://www.rics.org/profession-standards/rics-standards-and-guidance/sector-standards/construction-standards/whole-life-carbon-assessment

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Transcript

Episode 172:

Hello and Welcome to the Part3 with me podcast. 

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I am your host Maria Skoutari and this week we will be talking about RICS’s Whole Life Carbon Assessment Standard. Todays episode meets PC2 & 3 of the Part 3 Criteria.

And make sure to stay until the end for todays scenario.

As I mentioned in the previous episode where we covered Part Z, the Whole Life Carbon Assessment document prepared by the RICS is the go-to guidance at the moment relating to measuring whole-life carbon emissions, managing carbon budgets, reducing life cycle emissions and delivering a net-zero future for the built environment. It is important as architects that we are aware of such tools to better inform our built strategies and educate our clients of the possible solutions available. It's not just for use by RICS members but it is intended and encouraged to be used as a tool by the wider industry enhancing the quality, comparability and accuracy of data. 

It can be applied to any construction or built asset involving:

• New construction/new-build assets
• Demolition of existing and construction of new assets
• Retrofit/refurbishment of existing assets 
• Masterplans with multiple built assets, including associated project infrastructure assets and civil engineering works
• Fit-out of built assets

Now lets dive into the Guidance Document, starting with the key aspect of focus of it which is, What is a Whole Life Carbon Assessment: 

Whole life carbon refers to the carbon impacts over the entire life cycle of a built asset, from its construction through to its end of life. A whole life carbon assessment is the calculation and reporting of the quantity of carbon impacts expected throughout all life cycle stages of a project, but also includes an assessment of the potential benefits and loads occurring beyond the system boundary.

Whole life carbon assessments can be carried out during any project phase, using generic information in the early design phases before evolving to more specific data as the design becomes more developed. It is a great tool aiding decision making during the design, procurement, construction and use phases of a project enabling buildings to achieve the lowest carbon impacts across all life cycle stages. 

Now what are the steps and processes to be followed when undertaking a Whole Life Carbon Assessment:

Here we will expand at which points a Whole Life Carbon Assessment should be undertaken and how it can assist to provide an understanding of the carbon costs and benefits of different design choices. Helping to minimise lifetime carbon impacts and support the built environment sector’s efforts to achieve net zero by 2050. 

A compliant Whole Life Carbon Assessment should be undertaken throughout a projects lifecyle:

• Starting with the Concept design phase - pre-construction forecasts should be used as the project baseline for ongoing carbon reporting and progress tracking through the project.
• Then under the Technical design phase - pre-construction forecasts should be used to evaluate the evolving design, and at tender assessments should be used to evaluate tenders. 
• At the Construction phase - as specific products are chosen or the design is adjusted, pre-construction forecasts should be reviewed and updated to monitor construction variations.
• And at the final Post-completion phase - a post-completion assessment should be used to check the carbon reductions predicted in the pre-construction and at-tender forecasts that have been achieved. 

So, the RICS document sets out that all Whole Life Carbon Assessments follow a modular structure for carbon reporting which breaks down the built asset’s life cycle into stages and modules. This breakdown of how the life cycle stages of a built asset translate into modules for carbon reporting consist of:

• Life Cycle Stage A: This stage covers all carbon emissions and removals from any activities necessary to complete the construction of the asset. Then this translates into the modules for carbon reporting known as Modules A0, A1-A3 and A4-A5 relating to upfront and embodied carbon. 
• Module A0 covers the pre-construction stage relating to non-physical pre-construction activities, such as surveys and activities associated with the design of the asset. Such activities typically have much lower direct environmental impacts compared to the rest of the life stages of built assets.
• Modules A1-A3 cover the product stage relating to extraction, transportation and manufacturing required to produce any construction products. The carbon impacts attributable at this stage should be calculated by assigning suitable embodied carbon factors. For example: A1–A3 = material quantity × material embodied carbon factor
• Modules A4-A5 cover the construction phase relating to the transportation of construction products and all construction processes. Module A5 also includes any on-site demolition or strip out works required at the start of a project. Module A5 is split into four sub-modules:
• A5.1 covering pre-construction demolition of existing buildings and structures 
• A5.2 covering construction activities such as site preparation, temporary works, etc. An example of how this is calculated, if the average lifespan of scaffolding components is 20 years and it is being used on a project’s construction site for 2 years, then the fraction of embodied impacts that can be attributed to the project is 2/20, so 10% of the total embodied carbon (A1–A5, plus C1–C4) of the scaffolding used.
• A5.3 covering waste and waste management and should be calculated using the formula waste rate x site waste treatment embodied carbon factor. The waste rate is a percentage of the quantity of materials brought to the site that are wasted. The site waste treatment embodied carbon factor is informed by the principles outlined for the product and transport stages (A1–A3 and A4), and the end-of-life stages (C2-C4) and varies based on the disposal scenario.
• A5.4 covering worker transport, such as commuting of employees. 
• Life Cycle Stage B: This stage covers all carbon emissions and removals that occur over the in-use stage of the asset. Then this translates into the modules for carbon reporting known as Modules B1, B2-B4, B5, B6, B7 and B8 relating to operational carbon.
• Module B1 covers direct emissions and removals from construction products. Module B1 is split into two sub-modules:
• B1.1 In-use material emissions and removals released from materials of gases 
• B1.2 In-use fugitive emissions which are accidental releases of refrigerants
• Modules B2-B4 cover material-related emissions that occur from maintenance, repair and replacement of any construction products, components, or elements of the asset. Module B4 is split into two sub-modules:
• B4.1 Replacement of construction products, components and systems 
• B4.2 Replacement of industrial systems 
• Module B5 covers any refurbishment or change in performance of the asset planned at the outset of the project to occur at some point after construction is completed.
• Module B6 covers the energy use of the asset over the in-use stage
• Module B7 covers water use over the in-use stage. Module B7 is split into three sub-modules:
• B7.1 Water used by integrated systems such as for sanitation, cooking and drinking
• B7.2 Water used by other integrated systems such as fountains, swimming pools and saunas
• B7.3 Water used by non-integrated systems such as dishwashers, washing machines and washing cars.
• Module B8 covers user activities not included elsewhere, such as commuting. Module B8 is split into three sub-modules:
• B8.1 Energy related impacts associated with building user mobility/transport not covered in B6
• B8.2 Energy related impacts associated with building user charging of electric vehicles on-site
• B8.3 Other energy related impacts associated with building user activities relating to the building’s intended use, such as upstream embodied impacts of consumables used in the building for example stationery. 
• Life Cycle Stage C: This stage covers all ‘end of life’ impacts, translated into the modules of carbon reporting known as Modules C1-C4 relating to embodied carbon.
• Modules C1-C4 covers the impacts during the end of life stage of an asset, such as deconstruction, disposal and so on.
• Life Cycle Stage D: This stage covers potential benefits and loads beyond the system boundary. This then translates into the modules for carbon reporting known as Modules D1 and D2.
• Module D1 covers the potential carbon loads and benefits beyond the system boundary from reuse, recycling, energy recovery or landfilling of any material arising from modules A4-A5 relating to construction, B2-B5 relating to use and C1-C4 relating to end of life stages. 
• Module D2 cover the exported excess energy generated by a building over the course of the year. All data in D2 should be decarbonised using the same decarbonisation scenarios used for energy in B6. 

As mentioned, Whole Life Carbon Assessments should be undertaken from early design through to technical design, construction and post-completion utilising the modules just mentioned. Design teams should remember to update Whole Life Carbon Assessments during later project phases in order to monitor the performance against the initial carbon emission baseline as the project develops. It is also important to check the proposed asset has been constructed as designed, and changes have not been made during the construction process that affect carbon impacts, by providing an as-built Whole Life Carbon Assessment at the project’s practical completion.

Now let’s circle back to the project types that I mentioned at the beginning of the episode and look at their requirements in more detail. So as mentioned Whole Life Carbon Assessment can be applied to any construction or built asset involving:

• New construction/new-build assets
• Demolition of existing and construction of new assets
• Retrofit/refurbishment of existing assets 
• Masterplans with multiple built assets, including associated project infrastructure assets and civil engineering works
• Fit-out of built assets

So starting with New-Construction/new-build assets, under such developments, all life cycle stages must be assessed, including module D relating to the benefits and loads beyond the system boundary. 

Now relating to Demolition, deconstruction and new construction, under such developments, when any full or partial demolition or deconstruction of an existing structure is required, to facilitate the construction of a new asset within the designated site boundary or as an extension to the existing asset, the impacts associated with that demolition or deconstruction must be included in the Whole Life Carbon Assessment. As this approach minimises the need for new materials and reduces the amount of demolition waste therefore improving the product stage outcomes under modules A1-A3. 

Then relating to Retrofit/refurbishment of built assets, relating the Whole Life Carbon Assessment, such projects should be treated as new projects and must report against all life cycle stages and module D relating to the benefits and loads beyond the system boundary. Any demolition/deconstruction or alterations to facilitate the retrofit/refurbishment works, including removals and/or stripping out of elements, must be treated as pre-construction works and reported in the separate sub-module A5.1. New material added to the asset or project will result in product and construction stage impacts, which must be reported in modules A1–A5. New material may also cause in-use stage impacts, such as for maintenance or replacement, which must be reported in module B. End-of-life impacts from new material must be reported in module C, and potential post-end-of-life benefits or loads outside the system boundary must be reported separately in module D. Additionally, retained elements may result in impacts during the in-use stage, such as from maintenance or replacement, which must be reported in module B or from their end-of life impacts, which must be reported in module C and from potential benefits or loads outside the system boundary from their recovery, which must be reported in module D.

Now relating to Masterplan or multi-asset developments, when carrying out a Whole Life Carbon Assessment for multiple built assets within a residential, commercial, industrial or mixed use masterplan, total project impacts will need to be reported, as well as each built asset listed and assessed as a separate entity, external works within the site boundary and upfront carbon impacts related to external work  required outside the site boundary. All life cycle stages and module D must be reported separately. For large masterplans, works are often required outside the site boundary, impacts related to the product and construction stages of these scopes of work (A1–A5) should be reported separately, but later life cycle stages are not required to be included.

And lastly, moving on to Fit-out of built assets, the elements relating to fit-outs is typically split into shell and core which includes the substructure, superstructure, plant and so on, then its split into category A elements relating to any preparation works required for the shell and core, and category B elements relating to any site preparation works required for the Category A works to convert the space to suit the tenant’s requirements. So for a fit-out project, a Whole Life Carbon Assessment can be undertaken for any scope of works as long as the impacts are reported against the correct building elements categories, all life cycle stages are assessed and the replacement cycles are reflected. 

Now we spoke about the Whole Life Cycle Assessment's modular structure identifying the life cycle stages. Now let's look at the overall supporting framework for undertaking Whole Life Carbon Assessments:

So in addition to the life cycle stages to be included in a Whole Life Carbon Assessment, each development will undergo a Reference Study Period to be used for the Whole Life Carbon Assessment in order to assess the in-use phase. Reference Study Periods are intended to:

• stretch across a reasonably predictable time period into the future
• allow for a sufficient period of time for the asset to undergo wear and tear – specifically the replacement cycles of major components and systems
• allow for the deconstruction/demolition and disposal of the asset, even if the required service life is longer than the Reference Study Period
• enable comparability in the reporting of similar asset types, and
• recognise that decarbonisation trajectories are expected to reduce impacts over time for any type of project.

Reference Study Periods that must be used for compliant Whole Life Carbon Assessments, should be undertaken for a period of 60 years for domestic and non-domestic project, 120 years for infrastructure assets, mines quarries and offshore structure and 20-60 years for standalone fit-outs. These period are not set limits on the life expectancy of a project but are fixed periods to enable comparability between Whole Life Carbon Assessments for different projects. 

When a Reference Study Period is longer than the required service life of a project, reasonable project-specific scenarios for extended maintenance, repair, replacement and refurbishment (B1–B5) must be developed to cover the period until the end of the Reference Study Period. But if the Reference Study Period is shorter than the required service life, the project must be assessed for the duration of the Reference Study Period on a cradle-to-grave basis. 

Now in addition to the Reference Study Period, other elements to be included within the framework of Whole Life Carbon Assessments includes:

• The scope of the site to be included within the site boundary, for mixed use schemes this should also include external works. 
• The scope of the asset elements to be included 
• The quantification of the materials used to construct the asset
• The development of scenarios for the transportation, installation, maintenance, use, deconstruction and waste treatment of the asset enabling future impact predictions that may occur and lastly,  
• Carbon data for products and processes across the life cycle. 

To ensure such information to be included within Whole Life Carbon Assessments is as accurate as possible, there needs to be allowance for a certain level of uncertainty. This is managed by developing a Whole Life Carbon Assessment uncertainty factor made of three parts:

• The first being the contingency factor to be applied during all project phases to modules A, B1-B5, C and D. It reflects uncertainty regarding the design of the asset, its construction and the quantities and types of materials used. As such when costing projects, it's common for contingencies to be used to reflect uncertainties which should be considered at the time of the assessment. Uncertainty tends to reduce as the project phases proceed and more is known and finalised.
• The second part consists of the carbon data uncertainty factor, based on the representativeness and quality of the carbon data used for materials. During early design stages, it is best to use generic data to represent products and materials, as it is generally not clear the exact products that will be used, and from where and which manufacturers they will be sourced. There is therefore considerable uncertainty as to whether the dataset chosen will accurately represent the product that is finally selected, and it is therefore inappropriate to use the carbon data uncertainty factor during the early design phase. It is therefore added to modules A, B1–B5, C and D during the technical design, construction and post-completion phases. It reflects uncertainty regarding the representativeness of the carbon data in relation to the impact of the actual products that will be used, and the quality of the data.
• And the third relates to a quantities uncertainty factor, based on the expected accuracy of the material quantities data being used in the project. It is also added to modules A, B1–B5, C and D during the technical design, construction and post-completion phases, and reflects uncertainty regarding the quantities of the products that will be used.

The total uncertainty percentage figure therefore to be added to the Whole Life Carbon Assessment will be a combination of the three uncertainty factors.

Now lets conclude todays episode with outlining the information and assumptions that must be disclosed as part of a full Whole Life Carbon Assessment report:

Varying levels of detail are expected to be available at different phases of construction projects. Therefore, minimum reporting requirements of progressively increasing detail are mandated in line with key phases of project progress from early design, through to technical design and post-project completion.

A full Whole Life Carbon Assessment report should therefore aim to contain all asset elements and life cycle stages from Modules A-C and Module D outlined separately. The mandatory information that should be provided in the report therefore includes:

• Project name
• Asset type, sector and subsector
• Unique property reference number
• Identification and description of sub-assets to include their individually compliant Whole Life Carbon Assessments
• Project phase 
• Project description relevant to the stage of development 
• Relationship with other Whole Life Carbon Assessments
• Location
• Date of completion of construction
• Date of original construction if refurbishment of an existing asset
• Anticipated start-on-site and completion dates 
• Primary normalisation/functional unit 
• Secondary normalisation/functional unit 
• GIA of any demolished assets
• Breakdown of GIA by use type
• The following items are specifically to be included in the report if the assessment relates to a  building: State the height above ground and below ground and number of storeys above and below ground
• State the types of main materials or technologies used in building elements, such as steel for vertical structure
• State the types of main building services such as gas boiler
• Provide a brief description of retrofit works carried out for each building element, if applicable

So that’s the mandatory information that needs to be included in the Whole Life Carbon Assessment, there are also a few optional but recommended information to be included as well, including:

1. A conclusion recommending key emissions reduction opportunities and roles and responsibilities required to implement them
2. Context type
3. Scope of work carried out to retained elements, where relevant
4. Alignment with other profession guidance
5. Alignment with ICMS taxonomy 
6. Name/company of third party verifier.

This reporting method provides clear and transparent assumptions, data sources and results using the provided templates within the guidance. Reporting should align with ICMS 3 for consistency between cost and carbon data. Any deviations from the standard must be justified and documented. Mandatory compliance with the standard’s requirements ensures reliability and comparability of Whole Life Carbon Assessments globally, supporting industry-wide efforts to reduce carbon emissions in the built environment.

To sum up what I discussed today:

• The RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment (WLCA) guidance is now the industry standard for measuring and managing carbon emissions across the entire lifecycle of built assets. It is designed not only for RICS members but for the entire construction and property sector, providing a robust framework to inform design choices and help the industry move toward a net-zero future.
• Whole Life Carbon Assessment is applicable to all types of construction projects, including new builds, demolitions, retrofits, masterplans, and fit-outs. This broad applicability ensures that carbon impacts are consistently measured and managed, regardless of project type or scale.
• The assessment process follows a modular process from A to D and covers every phase of a project's life, from early concept design through technical design, construction, and post-completion. By updating the assessment at each stage, project teams can track and minimise carbon emissions throughout the asset’s lifecycle.
• A key feature of the Whole Life Carbon Assessment is its breakdown of the asset life cycle into clear reporting stages—upfront and embodied carbon, operational carbon, end-of-life impacts, and benefits beyond the system boundary. This structure ensures that all sources of carbon emissions are accounted for and reported transparently.
• Whole Life Carbon Assessment must include all relevant project details, life cycle stages, and justifications for any deviations from the standard. This approach supports global consistency, improves data quality, and underpins the industry’s collective effort to reduce carbon emissions in the built environment.