Application of life cycle assessment to various building lifetime shearing layers: Site, structure, skin, services, space, and stuff

Currently, green rating systems are not directly related to environmental consequences. Moreover, rating systems score both building-related tasks with long lifetime expectancies and system-related tasks with short lifetime expectancies without separating them. Therefore, passive solar and bio-climatic architectures, which have long lifetime expectancies and thus have a strong, negative impact on the environment, are neglected. The main goal of this study is to explore differences in total environmental impact for a single “typical” building module (with the heavy wall building technology accepted in Israel) in terms of six different lifetime shearing layers, Site, Structure, Skin, Services, Space Plan, and Stuff, each of which reflects a different form of environmental damage. The objective of this study was to evaluate the six shearing layers using life cycle assessment (LCA) by applying Eco-indicator 99 (EI99). It was found that the environmental damage associated with the Building layers (Site, Structure, and Skin) was higher than that associated with the Service layers (Services, Space Plan, and Stuff). The paper may contribute to the development of a more scientific (quantitative) background for green rating systems. As a result, a greater decrease in building-related ecological impacts can be achieved, thus encouraging sustainable building activities.