The European Commission has adopted new guidance urging authorities and building professionals to cut greenhouse gas emissions from buildings by assessing and reducing “whole life carbon” — from design and construction through use, renovation and demolition.
The document sets out ways to reduce emissions across a building’s entire life cycle, including those linked to construction materials, building work, day-to-day energy use and end-of-life stages, the Commission said on Friday.
The guidance also describes how policy measures can be combined to reduce emissions both for individual buildings and across wider building stocks, while referring to growing housing needs in Europe.
A central theme is prioritising renovation, repurposing and conversion of existing buildings over demolition and new construction.
The guidance includes an example of converting vacant office buildings into social and affordable housing, linked to the EU’s affordable and sustainable housing initiative.
Focus on materials, energy and space
The Commission’s guidance highlights “demand-side” measures — steps intended to reduce emissions by making better use of existing buildings, limiting unnecessary demolition and lowering demand for new materials — it said.
Buildings are essential for daily life but are also the EU’s largest consumers of materials and energy.
The building sector also accounts for a large share of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions and generates Europe’s biggest waste stream.
The document says reducing the sector’s impact requires action at every stage — from design choices and material supply to construction processes, renovation and operation, as well as how buildings and space are used over time.
It also references the New European Bauhaus, an EU initiative that has funded demonstration projects and invested in skills over the past four years, including through the New European Bauhaus Academy.
