Life cycle assessment of the air emissions during building construction process: A case study in Hong Kong

The generation of significant amount of emissions from building construction process has led the promotion of controlling emissions as an important strategy for implementing sustainable development principles in the built environment. The emissions incurred during various stages include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, non methane volatile organic compounds and particulate matter. This paper conducts the life cycle assessment of the air emissions by using a particular case to examine emissions during construction stage. This study examines the emissions sources in each of the six stages and presents an inventory analysis method to measure air emissions to quantify the air emissions during the six life cycle stages for buildings. This method can help evaluating the impacts of implementing a building on the air quality, thus actions can be taken in early stages to reduce the environmental impacts during building life cycle. A case study is presented to demonstrate the practical application of the method with reference to the building practices for all life cycle stages in Hong Kong. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.