Whole Life Carbon
The total greenhouse gas emissions associated with a building or infrastructure asset over its entire lifecycle, from raw material extraction through construction, operation, maintenance, and end-of-life demolition or recycling.
What is Whole Life Carbon?
Whole life carbon (WLC) encompasses both the embodied carbon (emissions from materials, construction, maintenance, and demolition) and the operational carbon (emissions from energy use during the building's lifetime). The concept is central to PAS 2080 and increasingly required in building regulations and planning policy.
The lifecycle stages are defined in EN 15978: product stage (A1-A3), construction process (A4-A5), use stage (B1-B7), end-of-life (C1-C4), and beyond-lifecycle benefits (D). Stage A1-A3 (embodied carbon of materials) typically represents 30-60% of whole life carbon for new energy-efficient buildings.
As operational energy efficiency improves (through better insulation, heat pumps, and renewable energy), embodied carbon becomes a proportionally larger share of whole life carbon. This shift means that material selection, structural design efficiency, and construction practices are increasingly important for decarbonisation.
The Greater London Authority (GLA) already requires whole life carbon assessments for major developments through its London Plan policy SI 2. The UK government has indicated that whole life carbon will be incorporated into future Building Regulations.
Practical Examples
An architect uses a whole life carbon assessment to compare a steel-framed design with a cross-laminated timber alternative, finding the timber option reduces embodied carbon by 45%.
A property developer calculates whole life carbon for a new office building across stages A1-C4, identifying concrete foundations and steel frame as the largest sources of embodied emissions.
A local authority requires a whole life carbon assessment as a planning condition for a new school, prompting the design team to optimise both material choices and operational energy performance.
How Climatise Helps
Climatise tracks operational carbon across building portfolios, providing the use-stage data (B6-B7) needed for whole life carbon assessments. Combined with embodied carbon data from design teams, this gives a complete lifecycle picture.
Book a DemoRelated Terms
Frequently Asked Questions
Need help understanding your carbon data?
Climatise turns complex emissions data into clear, useful reports. Book a call and we'll walk you through it.
Book a Demo