Whole Life Carbon Roadmap Progress Report 2025

An update on the built environment sector’s progress towards meeting our net zero trajectory, launched at COP28 in 2021.
Climate Change Mitigation Advancing Net Zero Net Zero Whole Life Carbon Roadmap Technical Report

UKGBC’s Net Zero Whole Life Carbon Roadmap for the Built Environment, published in 2021, was the first industry-led effort to develop a pathway to Net Zero for buildings and infrastructure in the UK. It identified the rapid and consistent actions needed to realise the 85% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (compared to 1990) required en route to near net zero emissions by 2050. This included both future-facing policy reforms and engagement from all sectors of the UK construction industry.

This report reviews progress in the six years following the 2018 baseline of the Roadmap. It presents the operational carbon, embodied carbon, and F-gar emissions of the entire UK domestic, non-domestic, and infrastructure stock based on reported data, for comparison against the progress determined to be necessary by the original roadmap.

Key findings from the Progress Report

The UK built environment is failing to decarbonise at the pace required.

Emissions have fallen by just 14% since 2018, far short of the 24% reduction required by 2024.

The next two years are make-or-break.

To recover lost ground by 2027, emissions must fall more than three times faster than they have to date.

Embodied carbon remains the biggest blind spot.

Instead of falling, embodied emissions have risen since 2018, showing that current construction practices are incompatible with net zero.

Policy intent is no longer enough.

Momentum is returning, but without decisive regulation and rapid delivery, ambition will not translate into emissions reductions.

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