Comparison of the Carbon Footprint of Timber and Masonry Buildings

¹ Technical university of Košice, Faculty of Civil Engineering, 040 0, Košice, Slovakia
² VŠB - Technical University of Ostrava, Faculty of Mining and Geology, 708 00 Ostrava-Poruba, Czech Republic

Abstract

Reducing the carbon footprint in the construction sector represents a key step toward achieving global climate goals. The building industry is one of the most significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, thereby playing a major role in climate change. With increasing demands for environmental sustainability, growing attention is being paid to the ecological profile of various construction materials and systems. This paper focuses on comparing the carbon footprint of two distinct types of residential buildings: timber and traditional masonry, with the aim of identifying their environmental impacts through the application of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method. The analysis includes the production phase of construction materials. The study’s results indicate that timber buildings have a significant potential to reduce the overall carbon footprint, primarily due to the lower energy demand for material production. In addition, wood acts as a carbon sink during its growth, which further decreases the total carbon emissions associated with the building.