The “Net-Zero Carbon Building Evaluation Scheme”, jointly launched by TÜV Rheinland (Germany) and the Building Research Establishment (BRE) of the UK, is designed to audit the quantified results of carbon emissions from buildings and evaluate low-carbon management systems for projects. It applies to any type of building. The assessment covers embodied carbon emissions of building projects, operational carbon emissions (for both new and existing buildings), and lifecycle carbon emissions of buildings. As the first net zero-carbon building evaluation standard in China, the current version being used is Version 21）.The NetZ Certification for net-zero carbon buildings is also the first certification scheme registered with the China National Certification and Accreditation Administration (CNCA)2）.

Version 2 of the Net-Zero Carbon Building Evaluation Standard has added assessment criteria specifically targeting net-zero emissions in building spaces – “Appendix A: Retail Commercial Store Evaluation Details”. This appendix provides a comprehensive evaluation in respect to seven dimensions: energy-consuming equipment and metering management, personnel management, asset sustainability, supply chain management, low-carbon management systems, low-carbon design and construction, and energy management systems. These details apply not only to small-scale, dispersed-chain, retail industry commercial stores selling similar goods and services under the same brand but also to independent evaluations and certifications of different brand shops within the same commercial complex.