Alternatives to "old growth & virgin" lumber

This article is courtesy of Healthy Home Designs

Wood is unquestionably the most extensively used building material. The average home contains about 13,000 board feet of framing lumber. In ideal circumstances wood is a renewable resource. However, present logging practices combined with growing demand has made wood a diminishing resource.

A few of the problems associated with conventional methods of logging wood are erosion problems, damaging of natural habitats and biodiversity, reduced oxygen generation, poor water quality and air quality both in the immediate area and on a global scale. Most of us have become increasingly aware of these important issues and have been seeking solutions. Fortunately, there are several alternatives to wood that have a softer environmental impact.

We recommend usage of:

• Certified sustainable wood
• Composition woods or engineered wood products
• Salvaged, reclaimed or re-milled lumber
• Wood from trees that might otherwise be in the waste stream (such as old fruit orchard trees), for finishes and trim
• Recycled content sheet goods, (recycled newsprint, agricultural byproducts or wood waste are considered recycled content materials).

Certified Sustainable Wood

Not all timber is created equal: some is harvested with care and knowledge of valuable ecosystems, while some is the product of clear cuts and deforestation. Until recently there was no dependable way for the customer to tell the difference. Conservationists and conscientious landowners have developed a certification program that vouches for green forestry. Certification is a way to use the market to provide positive incentives for long-term, ecological, forest management.

In order to receive this certification seal, landowners must devise explicit management plans for maintaining ecological balance and log only within the limits of the forests ability to grow back. Certifying agencies conduct annual inspections and audits of timber shipments to ensure that these businesses honor the guidelines.

In fact there's even an accreditation program to ensure that certifiers are above board. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is considered to be the gold standard for this task. The FSC supports environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world forests by establishing sustainable forestry guidelines. Another role of FSC is the accreditation and monitoring of third-party certifiers. The FSC is endorsed by the World Wildlife Foundation, the Wilderness Society, The Natural Resource Defense Council, the Rainforest Alliance and the World Resources Institute. Since it's founding in 1993 by indigenous groups, timber companies and environmental organizations, the Forest Stewardship Council has authorized three European groups and two in the United States- SmartWood and Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) to dispense the FSC logo.

For landowners the environmental stamp of approval reassures neighbors, workers and the public that they are practicing good forestry. Some high profile certified wood users include Martin and Gibson (guitars), Char-Broil (grills) and smith and Hawken (outdoor furniture). Home Depot and Lowe's have pioneered a commitment to certified wood by assign a phase out of conventional wood in exchange for FSC certified lumber.

As a consumer, the opportunity is yours to communicate that you are in support of forestry practice that protects habitats. When shopping at Home Depot or Lowe's simply look for the FSC logo (a check mark with a tree) stamped on the end of the lumber. By choosing products with this logo you can be assured that the wood you select comes from forests managed in an environmentally and socially responsible manner.

Wood Certification Overview

Industry Representatives

Certified Forest Products Council - www.certifiedwood.org is the industry representative and is an independent, not-for-profit, voluntary initiative committed to promoting responsible forest products buying practices worldwide. CFPC actively promotes the increased purchase, use, and sale of third-party independent certified forest products.

Certification Standards

Forest Stewardship Council - www.fscus.com is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization that promotes responsible forestry by accrediting and monitoring certification organizations to ensure compliance with FSC requirements. FSC also encourages the development of national and regional forest management standards

Third-Party Certifiers of Wood products

SmartWood - www.smartwood.org is approved to disseminate the FSC logo. Certifications include rediscovered wood such as wood from aging orchards.

Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) - www.scs1.com approved to disseminate the FSC logo.

Uses - Certified sustainable wood is used where any conventional wood product is used. Plywood and veneers have been certified making it easier to build furniture entirely out of good wood.

Attributes

Environmental -Certified wood protects natural habitats and conserves resources.

Functional Characteristics

Features - Certified lumber comes in a variety of species- western woods such as redwood, douglas fir and madrone and eastern hardwoods such as black cherry and red oak. Certified wood is also available in tropical woods such as rosewood and purpleheart.

Cost Factors - In most large distribution locations (Home Depot & Lowe's), the cost of certified wood is the same as conventional.

Manufacturers of Certified Wood Products
TruWood siding - manufactured by Collins Products LLC is the first and only FSC certified engineered siding. Since 1993 Collins Co. has certified their entire product line- from particleboard, to softwood and hardwood lumber, to softwood cut stock and veneer, to hardwood flooring and hardwood veneer logs and now TruWood siding.

For a complete listing of certified wood distributors visit http://www.certifiedwood.org/

Engineered Wood

Engineered wood products fall under the "green" category for several reasons. Since our old growth forests have diminished, the giant mature trees have all but vanished as a lumber resource. Today's building industry is limited to younger, smaller trees that yield little sizable lumber. Much of this new wood tends to be weaker and wetter, with more natural defects and less tensile strength. Interestingly, the strongest wood in a young tree is wasted on ordinary lumber, as it can't utilize the strongest fibers found toward the outside of the tree. But engineered wood can! Using technologies developed in the last two decades, engineered wood product manufacturers, such as TrusJoist can take a tree apart and put its fibers back together to take advantage of its natural strengths-wherever they're found on the tree. Using trees too small for sawn lumber, they can produce engineered lumber that's bigger and stronger than anything cut from a tree today. The result is a structural system of high quality lumber that's superior to the original log in size, strength and dimensional stability. But eliminating the need to harvest old growth trees is not it's only green point.

Manufacturing processes utilized convert as much as 75% of a log into structural lumber compared to less than 50 percent by conventional methods- using fewer trees to do the same job. Making the most of every fiber, they produce cost-effective readily available lumber that maximizes underused resources and minimizes environmental impact. Additionally, engineered woods are able to use wood from readily available and quick growing trees such as yellow poplar, Douglas fir and western hemlock.

Uses - include furniture, siding, Glue-laminated dimensional lumber:

1. laminated strand lumber- beams, posts, studs
2. laminated veneer lumber - beams, joists
3. laminated dimensional lumber - beams. Also available in certified lumber by special order

Wood I-Beams:

1. top and bottom chords - laminated
2. top and bottom chords - solid dimensional lumber

Web

1. Oriented strand Board (OSB)
2. Plywood

Attributes

Health - Avoid products manufactured with urea formaldehyde resin used as a binder. Formaldehyde is known to be a potential carcinogen to both workers and occupants since it can offgass for years. There are two kinds of formaldehyde resin - urea and phenol. The best option is locating a product that does not use either, but a compromised option is choosing one containing phenol formaldehyde. Phenol formaldehyde offgasses less and for a shorter period of time so the building can be given an "airing out" period. Sheet materials can also be opened up and aired out prior to installation. Those installing the material will still be at risk and should take precautions to protect their health, such as wearing a respirator or mask.

Environmental - This material has a relatively low impact environmentally, as the wood products replace need for old growth lumber. Manufacturing waste is minimized due to uniformity of the product.

Functional Characteristics

Features - Spans and spacing may be increased for engineered joists over spans for same depth dimensional lumber.

Cost Factors - Engineered lumber is typically less expensive than conventional framing lumber. (I still need to get a confirmation of this claim)

Manufacturers of Products that do not use urea formaldehyde
TrusJoist - www.tjm.com has several environmentally preferable products including Microlam, Paralam and TJI which use the less-toxic phenol formaldehyde. Another product,Timberstrand uses an isoccynate binder, avoiding the use of formaldehyde altogether.

Standard Structures, Inc - www.standardstructures.com manufactures certified engineered wood products. The company manufactures glulam beams, wood I-joists, and open-web trusses using certified wood and phenol formaldehyde binders.

For current contact information for manufacturers and distributors, please visit < georgebeeler.com >

Reclaimed/ Salvaged Wood

Non-forest sources of wood are an excellent alternative to virgin or old growth lumber and have been gaining in popularity. Reclaimed wood is salvaged from buildings that are being remodeled or torn down, abandoned railroad trestles and sometimes logs that sank decades ago during river log drives. Reclaimed wood is often available in species, coloration and wood quality not found in today's forest, making it the choice for builders with a creative vein.

In some cases, reclaimed wood suppliers only have a limited quantity of wood with matching color or grain or weatherization patterns. However, this can often be remedied by allowing ample lead time on your construction project ensuring the availability of the desired amount of wood.

Attributes

Environmental - Reclaimed wood use is desirable environmentally because it is not tied to recent timber harvest, is a reuse of materials and reduces the amount of wood in the waste stream and landfills.

Cost Factors - The cost of reclaimed wood is usually significantly less than virgin wood, rendering a significant financial savings.

Other Suggestions

Other sustainable options include use of wood already on location or re-milling of currently used wood.

Considerations

Avoid selecting wood that has been treated with CCA (chromated copper arsenic) or ACA (ammoniacal copper arsenate) pressure injected wood. Wood treated with these substances is classified as hazardous waste by the EPA. A healthier alternative is ACQ (ammonium/ copper/ quaternary ammonia) which does not contain arsenic or chromium.

References

Hearth and Home - by Seth Zuckerman "How Green is my Forest?" Sierra Club Magazine, 1998

Forest Stewardship Council - Standards & Policies/ Certification/Press Center

Certified Forest Product Council

Press release - 4/6/01 Certified Forest Products Council - "TruWood Siding Becomes the First and Only FSC-Certified Engineered Siding in the World"

Article online "Buying Eco-friendly Wood: How to find lumber that comes from sustainable sources" 6/13/00 by Sophia Ray, Verde Staff writer (made available on FSC United States website)

Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility Architectural Resource Guide edited by David Kibbey Copyright September 29, 1999

TrusJoist- A Weyerhauser Business- Product literature Copyright 2001

GreenSpec, Environmental Building News Product Directory and Guideline Specifications, Copyright 1999

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