Environmentally Friendly Wood?

What does that even mean? First off, I have really only seen two loud views on this subject. You are a pot smoking, bicycle riding, tree hugger or a hate filled, big SUV driving, money hungry, don’t care idiot. Wow, wonder where I fit? I drive a 6cyl pickup, enjoy riding bikes on the weekend and don’t smoke pot.

When scouting out wood for a project I want the best wood for the task. If I am building a closet shelf and plan to paint it I’ll choose an inexpensive wood like pine. If I am making a jewelry box or a book case I’ll see what I have available in the shop or take a trip to the lumber store. Several choices are available (you can read about them here) so I won’t go into detail about them all. It really breaks down into workability, look and price.

Environmentally friendly woods are considered to be anything that comes from sustainable forestry practices and / or lumber mills certified by third-party certifiers using the FSC or Forest Stewardship Council standards.

Adhering to FSC standards means forest owners must pay for experts to review their timber harvests, soil and water quality, make allowances for wildlife and biodiversity. Sawmill owners must pay for reviews of their practices and show they keep logs from certified forests separated from other logs. While, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative standards are not as tough as the FSC it seems that certification has become a necessity to the survival for the lumber industry.

I think like most people, so if I am at a lumber store I will go “slightly” out of my way to buy certified lumber if the price and quality are similar. But you won’t find me driving hours just to find something with an FSC stamp. I also won’t buy something that is overpriced just because it is certified.

The point is that we all understand forests are a resource. They are renewable if managed properly. The lumber industry is creative and should keep working to find ways to meet certification guidelines economically. It would be nice to see all lumber certified but not at double the price to the end consumer.

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