For existing buildings, which of the following elements would increase the embodied carbon in the...

In the CBCI EDGE curriculum, the embodied carbon assessment for existing buildings is handled differently from new construction. The key principle is that the existing building fabric is treated as already “sunk” and is not counted again in the embodied carbon calculation. This means elements such as the existing roof construction do not increase embodied carbon in the EDGE assessment for a retrofit project, because EDGE focuses on what is newly added or replaced as part of the upgrade scope.

Embodied carbon in EDGE is driven by the quantities and types of new construction materials introduced through the retrofit, such as added insulation, new wall or roof layers, new glazing, new finishes, or other building-material interventions. Therefore, the factor that increases embodied carbon is the inclusion of new materials in the retrofit scope.

While external shading devices can indeed add embodied carbon because they are additional materials, the most accurate and complete statement in the options is the broader one: any new materials added during the retrofit increase embodied carbon. New mechanical systems are generally treated under operational energy impacts rather than being core contributors in the EDGE embodied carbon in materials calculation.