A sustainable construction consultant has attacked Grimshaw Architects' Sustainability Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai for having an embodied carbon footprint of almost 18,000 tonnes ? a figure that is double the recommended level for a building of its size.
Simon Sturgis, a consultant who advises on low-carbon construction, described the building's carbon footprint as "very high" and said its design is "completely OTT".
Above and top: Grimshaw's pavilion sits in the Sustainability District of Expo 2020 Dubai
Its spectacular steel canopy is responsible for "significant unnecessary emissions," said Sturgis, who runs low-carbon consultancy Targeting Zero.
"This design is not where you would start if you wanted to make a truly sustainable Sustainability Pavilion." A lifecycle assessment sent to Dezeen by Grimshaw Architects shows that the construction process caused carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions of 1,050 kilogrammes per square metre, despite claims that the building would "set an example for sustainable building design".
Sturgis said the building is "comparable with a typical, average, new, multi-storey office building" in terms of its carbon footprint.
The pavilion, called Terra, has a built area of 17,000 square metres, meaning it has an embodied carbon footprint of 17,850,000 kilogrammes, or 17,850 metric tonnes.
Building is self-sufficient in energy and water
Grimshaw's pavilion is one of three flagship s...