2017 Volume 63 Issue 1 Pages 41-53
The local government of Nagano prefecture, which leads the field of wooden noise barriers in Japan, has developed two types of wooden noise barriers (Japanese larch-made and Japanese cedar-made). It targeted these wooden noise barriers and concrete noise barriers to evaluate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout their lifecycle. The effect of replacing concrete noise barriers with wooden noise barriers on the reduction of GHG emissions was evaluated. The results showed that the total amount of GHG emissions, from raw material procurement to construction, by Japanese larch-made noise barriers was lower as compared to concrete noise barriers over an evaluation period of 30 years. After the service period ended, a GHG emission reduction effect by using disposed wood, steel and concrete as fuel and recycled material could be obtained. The results indicated that replacing concrete noise barriers with Japanese larch-made and Japanese cedar-made noise barriers resulted in emission reductions of 91 kg-CO2-eq and 62 kg-CO2-eq, respectively, for every 1 m length of the noise barrier.
