Global climate change represents a significant threat to our well-being and to the well-being of future generations, across the world and in Pittsburgh. Climate change is driven by the emission of greenhouse gases, and urban areas are responsible for approximately 70% of global emissions. The state of Pennsylvania contributes significantly to global carbon emissions; if it were ranked as a country, it would be the 22nd largest carbon emitter in the world. Within Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh has a legacy of high per capita greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as a result of its heritage as a steel manufacturing city. Pittsburgh’s emissions per capita have reduced dramatically since its heavy industrial days, but the city can do much to reduce its GHG emissions.
To this end, there are three broad strategies that can most effectively reduce Pittsburgh’s urban emissions: shifting transportation modes, reducing residential building energy consumption, and reducing power sector emissions. Our research focuses on four policy types in the domain of building energy consumption, with interactions that span the three strategies. The four policy types that we choose to evaluate are: building quality, dense development, architectural form, and consumer habits.
At present, buildings are responsible for 81% of the Pittsburgh’s carbon emissions, a far larger share than any other sector. To address the contribution of building energy consumption to GHG emissions, Pittsburgh has set ambitious goals within its Climate Action Plan. These goals include reducing energy use in existing buildings by 50%, and achieving carbon neutrality and location efficiency in all new construction.