The infrastructure construction industry accounts for approximately 40% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (World Green Building Council in Bringing embodied carbon upfront, 2019) and 30–40% of landfill (Kabirifar et al. in J Clean Prod 263:121265, 2020; Lopez et al. in J Clean Prod 248:119238, 2020). This poses substantial challenges and opportunities for sustainable infrastructure development. This study analyses Australia’s Federal Government policies, which aim to reduce embodied carbon and waste generation in the infrastructure construction industry, and more specifically, the Federal Government’s ability to outline and provide specific guidelines on innovation adoption. The background of this research stems from the urgent need to mitigate the environmental impact of the infrastructure construction industry. The research methodology comprises a systematic review of Federal Policy artefacts, legislative frameworks, and relevant academic literature. Data collected from multiple sources was synthesised and analysed to gauge the presence or absence of specific innovation references in Federal Australian policies. The review revealed the need for Federal Policy to outline iterative innovation requirements for the infrastructure construction industry. The results of this desktop study serve as a baseline guide for the need to formulate future policies and initiatives that support the reduction of embodied carbon and waste generation. This paper acknowledges the limits of employing a broad-brush approach and emphasises the necessity for conducting more nuanced research that centres on state-level initiatives to focus on investigating the congruence between policies at the state level and broader national and international commitments.