Scope 3

Lendlease’s Scope 3
Emissions Protocol

Our Reporting Boundary

Absolute Zero by 2040

Our Absolute Zero by 2040 target includes eliminating Scope 3 emissions within the Lendlease defined boundaries, without the use of offsets. Whilst there is consistency and clear guidance on how to account for Scope 1 and 2 emissions across our sector, the same clarity is not yet in place for Scope 3 emissions.

Our ambition to eliminate Scope 3 emissions to achieve Absolute Zero means our business needs clear boundaries to track, measure and report Scope 3 emission sources across our value chain. And so, we have undertaken a rigorous process to establish clear Scope 3 boundaries for our business and our supply chain to move forward with confidence and consistency in addressing and reporting on Scope 3 emissions.

The Lendlease Scope 3 Emissions Protocol V.1 is intended to provide our current view on the Scope 3 emission categories we have determined to be relevant to our value chain and which will form part of our Absolute Zero by 2040 target.

A proposed global approach to Scope 3 measurement and reporting

The Lendlease Scope 3 Emissions Protocol V.1 is intended to contribute to broader efforts to help define a global approach to the measurement and reporting of Scope 3 emissions associated with real estate investments, development and construction activities.

We hope that you find the Lendlease Scope 3 Emissions Protocol V.1 useful in helping to inform your own approach so that together we can all better understand our Scope 3 emissions, focus our decarbonisation efforts on the most material emission sources, and report and track our decarbonisation progress consistently and comparably.

Download our Protocol

Peter Templeton, President & CEO, U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI).

“Lendlease is demonstrating true leadership by shaping an accessible and inclusive framework for Scope 3 reporting boundaries and taking responsibility for its own Scope 3 emissions. Lendlease is setting an industry-leading example that we encourage other real estate companies around the world to follow.”
Davina Rooney, Chief Executive Officer, Green Building Council of Australia

“We applaud Lendlease’s decision to share the Scope 3 Emissions Protocol V.1 and its call for consistent and comparable reporting boundaries across our sector. We know that industry transformation is possible when we are aligned and working towards the same goal and the decarbonisation of the property value chain is an urgent priority.”
Mr Ang Kian Seng, Group Director, Environmental Sustainability Group, Building and Construction Authority (Singapore)

"We commend Lendlease for their leadership in addressing their Scope 3 emissions. The Lendlease Protocol will provide greater clarity for their stakeholders in measuring and reporting of whole life carbon and can be a model for other developers to follow, especially for those pursuing net zero."
Simon McWhirter, Deputy Chief Executive, UK Green Building Council

“Accurately measuring and reporting on emissions is critical to ensuring meaningful and credible progress is being made towards our net zero carbon goals. We applaud Lendlease for setting out such a rigorous protocol for capturing and identifying the boundary of their Scope 3 emissions and we champion their ambition to break down the silos which exist within our industry’s value chain. When it comes to mitigating Scope 3 emissions, collaboration with those outside of your business is vital and we urge others in industry to join Lendlease in demonstrating such a transparent approach.”
Billy Grayson, Executive Vice President of Centers and Initiatives at the Urban Land Institute.

“The Urban Land Institute and its members are committed to advancing the decarbonization of the built environment, including a focus on Scope 3 emissions such as tenant emissions and embodied carbon of building materials. I applaud this effort by Lendlease to help our sector define and begin reducing its Scope 3 emissions, demonstrating the leadership the real estate industry needs to move the needle.”
Paul Astle, Decarbonisation Lead, Ramboll UK

“Lendlease’s Scope 3 Emissions Protocol is a really impressive initiative. I don’t know of any other organisation that has undertaken such a comprehensive and systematic exercise in setting out how to measure and report on their Scope 3 emissions. I recommend others take a look to understand how they may apply a similar process to their own organisation.”
Dan Winters, GRESB Senior Director

“Scope 3 is very difficult to both measure and reduce. Lendlease remains at the forefront of ESG by publishing this report, which provides the industry leadership necessary to tackle the business challenges ahead.”
Iva Munro, Senior Manager, ConcreteZero at Climate Group

"Tackling scope 3 emissions is critical to averting the worst of the climate crisis. So it's incredibly encouraging to see Lendlease taking a holistic approach to not just addressing the embodied carbon of concrete but its supply chain emissions too. By working collaboratively with suppliers to cut CO2 emissions, Lendlease is leading the way for the construction industry. We're proud to be working with Lendlease Europe as a ConcreteZero member."

The challenge of Scope 3 emissions

Scope 3 emissions are challenging as they are outside our direct control.

At Lendlease, our Scope 3 emissions are generated in upstream activities, such as the manufacturing of building materials or downstream activities, such as emissions from the use of electricity and natural gas by tenants.

A call for industry collaboration and integration

What will it take to reduce Scope 3 emissions across our value chain?

With the inclusion of materially relevant Scope 3 emissions in our Absolute Zero by 2040 target we have identified two big systemic challenges that will need to be overcome and will require industry transformation and collaboration:

Decarbonising some of the harder to abate materials, including steel, cement, aluminium and glass.

Building a data-sharing ecosystem to facilitate the digitised exchange of product-level emissions data across our vast supply chains.

Whilst we continue to work with our supply chain partners and through various industry groups to address the first challenge, we are pleased to share the Lendlease Scope 3 Emissions Protocol V.1, to help start the work and collaboration needed to address the second challenge.

No one organisation can solve the climate crisis, but together we can catalyse the industry collaborations to spark investment and innovation necessary to test, scale and drive the necessary transformation at pace. Please join us on the journey.

We are reducing Scope 3 emissions

Singtel Comcentre, Singapore

On the Singtel Comcentre redevelopment in Singapore, we are targeting a 30% reduction in embodied carbon, compared to Singapore’s BCA Green Mark 2021 Whole Life Carbon benchmark of 1000kgCO2e/m2.
One Sydney Harbour, Sydney

On One Sydney Harbour, we collaborated with suppliers to achieve a 34% reduction in the embodied carbon in the aluminium façade system of the third residential tower. This has resulted in a 5% overall reduction in the total embodied carbon for the project.
The Reed at Southbank, Chicago

We collaborated with our suppliers to develop a low carbon concrete mix for The Reed at Southbank. The concrete mix replaced up to 60% of the concrete’s Portland cement with post-industrial slag, reducing the building’s overall embodied carbon emissions by over 10%.
2 Aldermanbury Square, London

We are helping longstanding client, GPE, to reduce the embodied carbon of their 2 Aldermanbury Square development. Opportunities have been identified to cut carbon by 36% from the initial design, targeting an impressive 572kgCO2e/m2. Initiatives include reusing elements of the existing steel frame, procuring electric arc furnace steel and optimising the use of high strength steel.
555 Collins Street, Melbourne

On 555 Collins Street, we collaborated with project partners to optimise our concrete mix designs, reducing the concrete structure’s overall embodied carbon by approximately 30 per cent, at no cost to the client. This saved over 3,750 tonnes of carbon in the structure alone.
Claremont Hall, NYC

At Claremont Hall, we procured steel rebar with 97% post-consumer, recycled content from a low carbon, electric arc furnace steel producer recycling ferrous scrap products. It has an estimated 27% reduction in embodied carbon compared with conventionally produced steel, according to the Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute average.
Elephant Park 11B, London

On Elephant Park plot 11B we have worked with our supply chain to achieve a more efficient aluminium façade system which also delivers a lower embodied carbon factor, 60% lower compared to the European average aluminium carbon factor. In Europe, two years ago this ‘green’ aluminium product would have attracted a small premium, but today it can be delivered at price parity.
The Exchange, TRX, Kuala Lumpur

At The Exchange, TRX collaborated with the supplier to develop a lower carbon cement mix, replacing 30% Ordinary Portland Cement with GGBS. The mix was used in the construction of slabs, columns and staircase, projecting a reduction of 25% in embodied carbon for the hotel site.

Scope 3 emissions FAQs

There is an increasing focus on Scope 3 emissions disclosure globally, however, Scope 3 emission tracking and measurement is complex, so let’s explain a few things.

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Where are Scope 3 emissions generated?

Our business Scope 1 and 2 emissions primarily represent, in broad terms, the fuels we burn and the power we consume. These emissions are within our direct control. Our Scope 3 emissions are outside our direct control. They are generated in upstream activities, such as the manufacturing of building materials or downstream activities, such as emissions from the use of electricity and natural gas by tenants.
Why is Lendlease focused on Scope 3 emissions?

By including Scope 3 emissions in our Absolute Zero by 2040 target, we are committed to tackling the largest source of our global impact: currently our Scope 3 emissions are approximately 90% of our global carbon footprint.

The real estate and construction sector is heavily reliant on carbon intensive building products and materials such as steel, cement, aluminium, and glass. In our FY21 and FY22 Scope 3 emission estimates, the Purchased Goods and Services category, which are the building materials we use, accounted for the majority of our Scope 3 emissions.
Who is responsible for tackling Scope 3 emissions?

It’s important to understand that Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions are interconnected: the Scope 1 and 2 emissions of one organisation are reported as the indirect upstream or downstream value chain emissions (Scope 3) of another organisation. This means it is essential for all parts of the building value chain to collaborate and collectively work to reduce carbon emissions of the whole building system.
Why is Lendlease targeting Absolute Zero for Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions?

The built environment sector contributes approximately 40% of global carbon emissions that are threatening life as we know it. But time is running out for the world to be able to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees and business as usual will not create the transformation our sector needs to tackle the climate crisis.

Our Absolute Zero by 2040 target means we want to eliminate, not just offset, the Scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions within the boundaries we have defined as being relevant to our value chain. We maintain targeting the elimination of carbon emissions, without the safety net of offsets, is what the world needs. It is the best way to drive investment in harder to abate materials and accelerate the decarbonisation of our sector.
What is needed to track and measure Scope 3 emissions?

Scope 3 emission tracking and measurement is complex. Scope 3 emissions performance data is embedded in other organisations, has multiple source points and different levels of transparency, completeness, and assurance. In addition to inconsistent methods and standards for calculation, there is also no standardised data exchange across technology solutions.

To track and measure Scope 3 emissions, we all need to be able to securely exchange reliable, accurate and digitised emissions performance data across value chains. To enable this exchange, the development of an industry-wide secure and transparent Scope 3 supplier reporting platform would greatly assist tracking, measuring and reporting Scope 3 emissions.