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While most companies focus on Scope 1 and 2 emissions, Scope 3 often accounts for over 70% of a building’s carbon footprint. For consultants, architects, and developers, understanding upstream and downstream emissions—materials, transport, user operations—is key.

May 2025

Why the Built Environment Can’t Ignore Scope 3
The Lake Garden Residence

1. The Scope 3 Problem Unlike Scope 1 (direct emissions) and Scope 2 (purchased electricity), Scope 3 includes indirect emissions across the value chain. This includes: - Upstream: Materials manufacturing, transport, construction activities - Downstream: Building operations, user behavior, end-of-life disposal In building projects, Scope 3 can account for 70–90% of total lifecycle emissions.

2. Where Scope 3 Hides in Projects - Materials (Category 1): Concrete, steel, glass—especially if not locally sourced or low-carbon - Waste (Category 5): Site waste, packaging, construction offcuts - Business Travel & Employee Commute (Category 6 & 7): Often unmeasured but highly relevant for consultancies and project managers - Use Phase (Downstream): Emissions from tenant operations, if performance guarantees are tied to energy or IAQ

Mapletree Business City

3. What BSD Recommends To manage Scope 3 effectively: - Conduct Whole Life Carbon Assessments using EN 15978 methodology - Use EPDs (Environmental Product Declarations) for product-level visibility - Track upstream/downstream impacts through Carbon Compaz, BSD’s new emissions platform - Prioritise procurement strategies that encourage low-carbon materials

4. Policy Is Catching Up Green Mark 2021 now includes credits for embodied carbon. Meanwhile, ISSB (via IFRS S2) makes Scope 3 mandatory where material. It’s no longer “good to have”—it’s a baseline.

At BSD, we help clients decode Scope 3 complexity with practical tools, verified methods, and sector-relevant benchmarks.

🌱 Ready to reduce your carbon impact beyond the obvious? Get in touch with our Carbon Advisory Team.

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