An excellent critique here of the C6 tower in Perth - asking whether we should really be building tall buildings at all, and certainly whether it is efficient to do so in timber. Key takeaways for me: ??As a positive, Andrew's article suggests an upfront carbon footprint of 10,000tCO2e*, which is 220kgCO2e/m2, or 41t per apartment - which sounds pretty good to me. Though I'd love to see the final numbers! ??However... the 6000t of timber used in the building is coming from Austria, shipped to Australia. This would double the emissions related to that timber, I believe. Could this wood have been better used in Europe? If sustainability was the goal, why wasn't Australian timber prioritised? ??And, given that most of the surrounding buildings are 3-6 storeys tall, what's the need for a 52-storey tower here? If used in low-rise construction, could those 6000t have been used to create a greater floor area? Timber construction continues to gain interest, but we need to keep asking where, how, and why we use it. Is 'tallest timber building ever' really an accolade worth persuing? Thank you Andrew Waugh for provoking some thoughts with my morning coffee! #timber #structuralengineering #netzero #climatechange *calculated from the statement around the biogenic carbon stored in the structure outweighing the upfront emissions of the building. At 6000t of timber, this would be around 10,000t of upfront emissions.
Thanks to Will Hunter for asking me to contribute to this important new publication, sharing insights on issues confronting the construction industry! Published by Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), VERTICAL URBANISM is a great platform for contributing to the imperative dialogue about the future of our cities and how we can transform design and building practices to create thriving, diverse and engaging cities for all. ? My article, ‘High Hybrid', takes a critical look at Perth’s C6 tower, the world’s tallest timber building, and the role that skyscrapers may or may not play in the future of sustainable cities. ? View the publication online here: https://lnkd.in/eyYcRUKH #CTBUH #VERTICALURBANISM #TimberConstruction #MassTimber #CLT #ConstructionRevolution
Agostino Anselmo
4 个月
Not sure why, but many EPDs of Australasian EWPs have much worse GWP figures than the European ones. Several EU glulam EWPs have a GWP-GHG of less than 80 kgCO2e/m3, while the average Australian one is at 380 kgCO2e/m3. If the focus is on WLC, a little tradeoff between A1-A3 and A4 can sometimes be a good thing. It would all be easier to understand with the actual numbers ??
Phoebe Moses
4 个月
As someone mentioned- CLT in Australia has a very high GWP, due to the high emissions intensity of the grid. This is leading a number of people to look to Austria (actually a good thing in that it has created enough competitive tension for Aus CLT manufacturers to invest in new renewables generation to secure “low emission” electricity- not sure how I feel about that as it is then included in GWP figures and is kind of an offset but those are the rules apparently!). Also- depending on FRR requirements- may have required EU CLT due to the fire resistant glues used, not available for CLT manufactured in NZ or Aus.
FRSA | MEng CEng MIStructE | WELL AP | Sustainability Manager at England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB)
4 个月According to sessions I did in Amsterdam back in 2015 on Resilliant Cities from a health and wellbeing point of view, the epidemiologists and urban planning experts were saying that the optimal density for a mixed use, urban area consisted of 4-5 storey terraced buildings with activation (shops, restaurants etc) on the ground floor. Similar to many parts of NYC with 4-5 storey walk ups and where most people walk to get from A-B. The key was that people use the stairs and also (may) know those in the immediate vacitinity. Obviously also good to be near some green space.