Quantification of the Carbon Emission of Road and Highway Construction in China Using Streamlined LCA

Road and Highway (R&H) construction is very resource and energy-intensive, and therefore inevitably results in serious environmental concerns, including the great energy use and carbon emission. There are a few valuable quantitative studies to focus on transportation sector. However, there is relatively little work to systemically and completely look at and compare the energy use and carbon emission from R&H construction industry in China. Especially, there is relatively little research on the methodology development. Thus, this paper is designed to characterize the R&H construction industry in China using national statistical data by the Ministry of Transport, on this basis, using Streamlined Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) to answer: (1) How to streamline the process to dynamically quantify the carbon emission impact of R&H construction industry; (2) How to assess the expected confidence levels. Specifically, the activities related to R&H construction in China is formed which includes the length, types, design modes, and other aspects related to life cycle. The emissions factors corresponding to construction (design) methods and road making materials embodied impacts drawn from literature (China-specific case studies). In addition, China-based power mix is employed for the carbon emission factor including attendant uncertainty. To summarize, the outcomes are important from a policy standpoint and low-carbon technologies substitution point, and the methodologies are also important for future carbon emission quantifications of other transportation sectors in China and beyond.