The pavilion, the twentieth in the annual architecture commission, was designed by Johannesburg architect Counterspace. The superstructure of the pavilion is made from wood, plywood and cork вЂњThe sequestration of the timber and the cork more than compensates for the emissions,вЂќ said AECOM sustainability director David Cheshire. However, all these emissions are outweighed by carbon sequestered in the wood, plywood and cork used to build the pavilion, according to AECOM. In addition, the assessment calculates that 1,400 kg of carbon emissions resulted from the recycled steel structure, although this figure would have been far higher if virgin steel had been used. Timber and cork вЂњmore than compensatesвЂќ for other emissions The remaining 16 tonnes of emissions come from roofing materials including steel purlins, polycarbonate and a waterproof membrane, concrete blockwork, micro cement finish and paint, as well as materials used to build the pathways.

Although it looks solid, the pavilion is mostly hollowДЇor a building to be carbon negative, it needs to sequester more atmospheric carbon over its entire lifecycle than it emits.ДЄECOMвЂ™s 10-page document states that the pavilionвЂ™s concrete foundation emits 44 tonnes of CO2 equivalent, making up by far the largest percentage of emissions. Pavilion criticised for its concrete foundationДЄECOM, a multinational engineer and construction consultant, has worked on the pavilion each year since 2013, when it was designed by Sou Fujimoto.ДЄECOMвЂ™s embodied carbon assessment is an internal document that has not yet been signed off for public release.Д«ut the firm shared the document with Dezeen following media criticism of the structureвЂ™s concrete foundation and scepticism about claims that the pavilion is carbon negative. The assessment was made prior to construction using eToolLCD LCA software, which takes into account whole-life emissions including transportation and decommissioning of the structure. The temporary structure, which opened in Kensington Gardens in London last week, emits approximately 60 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent and absorbs around 91 tonnes via the timber and other biomaterials used in its construction, according to the life cycle assessment (LCA) prepared by AECOM. вЂњIt wasnвЂ™t necessarily to get to negative but this particular architecture lent itself to it and it gave us this result, which was a surprise because I donвЂ™t think any of us thought we would get to a negative situation this year.вЂќ The pavilion was designed by Johannesburg-based practice Counterspace вЂњThe goal here was to do a low-carbon building,вЂќ said David Glover, technical adviser to the Serpentine Galleries, which commissioned the structure. The construction team said it didnвЂ™t expect to achieve negative carbon with the project. вЂњThese options will form part of the handover documentation to the new owners,вЂќ AECOM added. вЂњThe initial assessment of these options has shown that a net-carbon negative or, at worst, a carbon-neutral build can be targeted in a whole life cycle assessment of the relocated pavilion.вЂќ вЂњThere are a number of options available, all of which have a substantially lower environmental impact than the concrete used at Kensington Gardens,вЂќ AECOM said. This will require the construction of new foundations but since the location is unknown, AECOM said it has been unable to calculate the carbon impact. However, the assessment did not take into account the carbon emissions that will be generated when the pavilion is moved to a new location at the end of the summer. The Serpentine Pavilion 2021 opened to the public last week вЂњThe total cradle to grave embodied carbon emissions of the pavilion are -31,000 kg of CO2 equivalent,вЂќ the report states. The construction of this yearвЂ™s Serpentine Pavilion removed 31 tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere, according to a report by construction consultant AECOM.ДЄs a result, the structure can claim to be carbon negative, meaning that it will remove more CO2 equivalent from the atmosphere than it emits, up to the point it is dismantled.

Briqs riverfront