MECLA Working
Group 1 - Demand
Working Group 1 – Demand Side (WG1) is focused on sending a clear, consistent and significantly increased demand signal for low/no embodied carbon materials so that suppliers are confident to invest in decarbonisation innovation. All working groups include a diversity of expertise from industry, universities and the public sector. The chair and co-chair are Ann Austin, Head of Sustainability at Lendlease, and Daniel Prohasky, Co-Founder and CEO of Curvecrete respectively.
WG1 identified key industry stakeholders driving demand and developed four intiatives to help accelerate demand for low carbon materials. These initiatives include two procurement related policy ideas, a tool kit to support policy makers and guidance on effective ways to provide alternate solutions in tendering responses. The working group operates in four subgroups, each focused on one of the aformentioned areas. You can learn more about each of the subgroups and focus areas below.
Pledge Pre-Requisite
The pledge pre-requisite aims to establish a policy to require head contractors to set and monitor a publicly available target to reduce embodied carbon in building materials as a pre-requisite to be able to tender for government work. The focus is on a publically accessable, preferrably Science Based Target that includes scope three. The target is to apply to the head contractor’s total organisation (not just a project) to drive demand and simplify assessment of compliance with the pledge pre-requisite.
Toolkit
The objective of the toolkit is to provide policy makers and clients an understanding of embodied carbon. The toolkit includes a project planning guide, an explanation of benchmarking tools, examples of model specifications, a glossary of terms, case studies, research results, available grants, an expert finder, and information on entities working in this space.
Measure and Disclose
This subgroup consults industry and government on required measurement and disclosure of embodied carbon. The first priority is to establish a requirement for new buildings to complete a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) as part of the building code or planning requirements, and to disclose the embodied carbon outcomes, relying on an agreed upon common measurement methodology.
Show me how to Deviate
The final subgroup is working to create a standard pathway assisting developers and designers to deviate from material specifications. This pathway identifies key stakeholders, and works with them to map the approval process for contractors or designers to propose alternate, low carbon materials that deviate from client specifications. You can learn more about the deviation subgroup by watching a recent presentation by Matt DiMarco, Managing Director at inti.
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