(EnergyAsia, September 10, Wednesday) — London, England-based Consultant darbon8 said it has been commissioned to carry out carbon management and measurement for the new Masdar City development in Abu Dhabi, slated to be the world’s first zero-carbon, zero-waste, car-free city.

To provide the most accurate measurement of the city’s carbon footprint, dcarbon8 said it is measuring the operational carbon of the Masdar organisation and carbon emitted by third party consultants and contractors associated with its design and construction. This involves defining the third party business carbon footprint boundaries for the specific activities of all organisations (e.g. architects, master planners, consultants, contractors, etc) directly contracted by the Masdar organisation as a part of the Masdar City development.

darbon8 said it was specifically engaged in the project for its expertise to provide a strategy for measuring the embodied carbon of the development. The company will create a carbon database of all the materials used to construct the city. This includes evaluating the robustness of data sources and defining the operational data required from all material suppliers at the tender stage.

Andrew Marris, co-founder and CEO of dcarbon8, said: “We are very excited about the opportunity to work on such an exciting and ground-breaking development. Masdar will become a benchmark for other cities to follow and a legacy for future generations. It is the world’s first city to be designed to be sustainable from ground up.  Masdar took action on the largest conceivable scale and shows true leadership in rising to the challenge of climate change.”

dcarbon8 is helping the Masdar organisation develop an online carbon monitor. This ‘carbon dashboard’ provides a “one stop shop” for architects, engineers and sustainability consultants to access carbon data, either for very quick decisions or for full reports on the component of material they are researching.  It includes a colour coded system for specifying sustainable materials for the city.  dcarbon8 is responsible for producing the data interface for the dashboard.

dcarbon8 is a world leading consultancy in sustainability, carbon measurement and reduction and supply chain management.
The Masdar Initiative was established to promote renewable energy solutions through investment, education, R&D, and establishment of a model for future energy production within a globally sustainable framework.

The first step in the city’s seven-phase plan is the development of the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (MIST),  the world’s first graduate university dedicated to renewable energy, developed in collaboration with MIT and scheduled to open in 2009.

The six-sq km district is designed by renowned architecture firm Foster + Partners and set to be completed in 2016 in conjunction with Abu Dhabi’s 2030 development plan. It will eventually grow to 1,500 businesses and 50,000 residents and will be home to international business and top minds in the field of sustainable and alternative energy.