Assessing and mitigating the carbon emissions from illegal urban buildings: A spatial lifecycle analysis

Rapid urbanization has escalated construction activities, significantly contributing to global climate change. Illegal buildings, a byproduct of this urban sprawl, pose regulatory and environmental concerns, with their impact on carbon emissions being a critical yet understudied aspect. This research, employing a lifecycle assessment combined with spatial analysis, addresses a significant gap in the understanding of carbon emissions from illegal buildings. The current analysis of 130,940 illegal buildings in Beijing reveals a collective emission of approximately 29.78 million tons of CO2e across their lifecycles. The Product Stage and Use Stage are the most carbon-intensive, contributing around 11.1 million tons and 17.7 million tons of CO2e, respectively. Spatial analysis identifies emission patterns across city districts, influenced by building types and functions. The study highlights potential carbon emission reductions in illegal buildings, suggesting improved detection and monitoring, increased recycling of construction materials, and ’Green Revitalization’ post-demolition as key strategies.