ý

Neue Mitte Tempelhof

Berlin, Germany

Project details
Client

Berliner Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung, Bauen und Wohnen

Duration

2023-2024

ý provided by ý

Advisory, Circular economy, Environmental consulting, Sustainability

ý helped to create a vision for a sustainable new urban neighbourhood for the Tempelhof quarter of Berlin – developing measures to minimise CO2 emissions and ensure the circular use of resources for the 10-hectare development, which will deliver new housing and modernise and expand public facilities around Tempelhof town hall.  

Challenge

The challenge of the project lies in meeting the increased demand for inner-city housing and public facilities while adhering to the climate neutrality goals of the state of Berlin (Berlin Energy and Climate Protection Programme BEK 2030). While climate-neutral energy supply is possible and also aimed for in the operation of the quarter, conventional new construction leads to emissions. It is therefore important to assess the benefits of reusing existing building components and materials as much as possible to maximise the focus on circularity for the development and minimise carbon emissions at every stage. 

A rendering of the new urban quarter Tempelhofer Mitte showing a girl with a kite in an autumnal urban park setting
Neue Mitte Tempelhof, a 10-hectare development project in Berlin, will deliver new housing and modernise and expand public facilities around Tempelhof town hall.  Image: Teleinternetcafe und Treibhaus Jonas Bloch

Solution

The sustainability and urban planning team at ý responded to this challenge by comparing the environmental impacts of scenarios over a lifecycle of 50 years. This included a comparison between the benefits of reusing existing structures against demolition with new construction in terms of overall carbon intensity.  

Initially, an on-site survey was conducted to assess the existing structures in terms of the potential for reusing materials and components. This was followed by an assessment of the energy expenditures and greenhouse gas emissions associated with the demolition of existing buildings and the construction of new ones. The assessment considered not only construction emissions and the embodied carbon of new structures, but also operational emissions, emissions from mobility within the quarter, and the potential of natural carbon sinks.  

In a final step, four scenarios were developed, encompassing the existing structures in their current form, the existing structures in a renovated state, new construction using conventional methods, and an optimised new construction. In the last scenario, measures were presented based on their effectiveness in minimising greenhouse gas emissions. The assessment revealed that an optimised new construction would result in 52% fewer CO2 emissions over the entire lifecycle compared to conventional new construction.  

Additionally, as part of a circularity assessment, strategies were developed to enable the reuse of as much material and building components from the existing structures as possible. The individual components were classified according to their potential for “reuse”, the reuse of a component in its current form, “recycle”, the breakdown of a component to the material level and its reuse at a similar quality level, and “downcycle”, the breakdown of a component to the material level and its use at a lower quality level. Strategic recommendations were provided to demonstrate how circular material use can be implemented.

ý was commissioned to support the client with a concept of how to provide modern housing for Berlin while achieving the city’s climate goals. Image: Teleinternetcafe und Treibhaus Jonas Bloch

Value

The study played a key role in supporting the client to assess the development and achieve its climate goals. It highlights the emissions expected during the development and how these can be minimised through targeted measures in the areas of construction, energy and mobility. It also identifies the actions needed to bring the quarter as close as possible to climate neutrality. The circularity assessment provides a basis for the continued use of materials, enabling the efficient utilisation of existing resources.

The challenge of the project lies in meeting the increased demand for inner-city housing and public facilities while adhering to the climate neutrality goals of the state of Berlin. Image: Dirk Laubner