Overview of the Regulations of Different Regions to Reduce Carbon Dioxide Emission, and Building Policy

Abstract

This paper assesses the global urgency to decarbonize the buildings and construction sector, which around 40% of annual global emissions, against the backdrop of record atmospheric concentrations (426 ppm in 2025). The research reviews the carbon strategies and building regulations of major global emitters, including the EU, USA, China, Russia, India, and Brazil, and evaluates the challenge posed by the existing and projected global building stock. Analysis reveals significant policy disparity: the European Union leads with legally binding targets and directives, mandating net-zero new buildings by 2028, while policies in other large economies (e.g., Russia) remain very moderate to reduce fossil carbon emission. Furthermore, achieving the net-zero building stock goal by 2050 is severely challenged by the inertia of existing buildings and dynamic growth in emerging economies. Two-thirds of today’s buildings will remain in use in 2040, yet the annual deep renovation rate in the EU is only around 0.2%. With 80% of new construction growth expected in developing nations, a radical acceleration of deep renovation (to 2–3% annually) and uniform global adoption of mandatory net-zero standards for all new construction by 2030 are imperative.

Corresponding author: horvathbrigitta@platanplan.hu