If embodied carbon is on your radar for LEED, LEED v5 changes the conversation and puts more emphasis on embodied carbon. Embodied Carbon assessment is now part of the minimum requirements for certification.
Under the new Quantify and Assess Embodied Carbon prerequisite, project teams must assess the major materials in the building’s structure, enclosure, and hardscape. Early in design, this includes identifying the largest sources of embodied carbon and considering opportunities to reduce them. The prerequisite requires assessment and disclosure, but it does not require the project to meet a specific reduction target.
Projects seeking points can pursue the new Reduce Embodied Carbon credit, worth up to six points for LEED v5 New Construction (!). There are three main ways to earn points, and teams can combine them within the credit’s overall limit.
The first option is a Whole-Building Life Cycle Assessment
The assessment covers the structure, enclosure, and hardscape from cradle to grave, excluding operational energy and water use. It reports global warming potential and five additional environmental impact categories. For New Construction projects, meeting the baseline earns two points. Reducing global warming potential by 10% earns three points, 20% earns four, 30% earns five and 40% or more earns six.
The second option uses product-specific Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs)
Used to compare the embodied carbon of installed materials with recognized industry averages. Projects can earn points through either a project average calculation or by demonstrating reductions across a required number of material categories.
The third option addresses construction activity emissions.
One point is available for tracking fuel and utility use from contractor jobsite operations. Two points are available when the tracking also covers subcontractor operations.
LEED v5 also gives building and material reuse its own credit rather than treating reuse as the highest whole building LCA pathway. For projects pursuing LEED Platinum, a 20% embodied carbon reduction is required.
The practical takeaway is that embodied carbon now needs to enter the project much earlier. Every LEED v5 project must assess it, and teams pursuing meaningful reductions need to use the findings while structural systems, envelope assemblies, and major material specifications can still change. As we found when comparing LCAs completed at rezoning and building permit, the assessment should begin early and be updated as the design develops. A whole-building LCA completed at the end of construction can document the result, but it cannot recover the reduction opportunities that disappeared during design.
We’ve worked on more than 150 LCAs across Canada, most of them in the City of Vancouver, which sets some of the country’s most demanding embodied carbon requirements. We’ve helped projects achieve reductions of 30% and worked with reused and salvaged materials to reach ambitious targets. If you’re pursuing the higher point levels under LEED v5’s Reduce Embodied Carbon credit, that’s the kind of experience you want on your side. We’ve also won multiple BC Embodied Carbon Awards and a Canadian Trailblazer recognition at the BUILD Sustainable Building Awards, and you can see what it’s like to work with us in our Google reviews.
Got more questions? We’ve answered the ones we hear most often here.
Request a project specific scope and fee, and let’s figure out which path makes sense for your project.
