An Overview of Environmental Performance Indicators in the Construction Industry

This paper analyzes environmental performance indicators (PIs) in the construction and building industry using bibliometric and content analysis, particularly in the fields of architecture and civil engineering. The paper aims to present a framework for environmental performance in the construction industry, focusing on projects and their impacts. It addresses which research fields are most focused on this area, whether the topic is currently relevant, whether it shows a positive or negative trend, what related topics exist, and what general overlaps or gaps are present. It also examines which PIs are most frequently mentioned and whether the topics and indicators align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). The results reveal a fragmented research area, with both complex PIs and very narrow PI applications, highlighting the need to bridge these gaps and address the challenge of insufficient data. The research uses QtoQ Target Mapping to map the PIs to the UN SDGs and provide an overview of coverage. The findings indicate that this topic is highly important and researched across various disciplines, and that the PIs and their analysis further contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.