2026 Volume 22 Issue 4 Pages 205-216
The construction sector has a significant environmental impact throughout the life cycle of buildings and bears a major responsibility for reducing that impact. To realize buildings with low environmental impact, it is essential to conduct LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), which allows for a comprehensive and quantitative evaluation of various environmental impact substances. However, LCA for buildings involves a large number of components and a broad scope of evaluation, making the assessment process extremely labor-intensive. For this reason, we believe it is important to evaluate existing buildings and use the findings to gain insights applicable in the early design stages, as well as to compile perspectives on reducing environmental impact that can be utilized during the design process. This article introduces domestic and international research cases that examine trends based on analyses of multiple buildings. It also presents a case study in which the authors conducted a multi-criteria analysis of the environmental impacts attributable to 117 buildings (focusing on embodied materials—structural elements and finishes, excluding equipment). Based on the analysis results, dominant factors were identified, and mitigation strategies were explored.
