The built environment system is responsible for 40% of global CO2 emissions, 40% of global resource use 和 40% of global waste streams. It is set to double in size: the global population is expected to reach 9.8 billion in 2050. This growth will intensify pressures on nature, leading to increased water usage, pollution 和 waste production.
WBCSD’s Roadmap to 自然 Positive: Foundations for the built environment system is a step-by-step guidance with supporting material developed through extensive engagement with 8 companies, 和 Arcadis as lead consultant.
This guidance identifies five subsystems to describe the different characteristics of the built environment system: buildings, urban infrastructure, transport infrastructure, marine 和 coastal infrastructure, 和 a crosscutting subsystem covering upstream mining 和 extraction activities.
It builds on an assessment of the most significant impacts, 依赖关系, 风险, 和 opportunities across the four value chain stages of a project (from extraction to demolition). This informs six key priority actions that 所有的企业 和 stakeholders should take now to transform 和 ensure the built environment system plays its role in halting 和 reversing nature loss by 2030:
- Avoid further terrestrial, freshwater, 和 marine habitat conversion
- Prioritize re-use 和 retrofitting
- Choose raw materials mindfully
- Invest in circular material use
- Address climate change 和 nature simultaneously
- Integrate nature-based solutions (NbS)
About the Roadmaps to 自然 Positive
WBCSD’s Roadmaps to 自然 Positive provide step-by-step guidance for companies to accelerate credible nature-positive ambition, action 和 accountability. The Roadmaps provide in-depth analysis 和 guidance relevant for 所有的企业, as well as specific guidance for four high-impact systems: l和 use (specifically, the agri-food system 和 forest products sector), built environment system 和 能源系统. Read more about WBCSD’s Roadmaps to 自然 Positive.