Making the global case for American hardwoods

Elon ARCHITEcTs, DESIGNERS and contractors, the choice I-' of materials for their projects is a far more complex process than it might have been l0 years ago. Now these choices must be made against a background of legislation and guidance designed to reduce the environmental impact of the building industry and encourage informed choice when it comes to selecting products and materials.

As a result, industry groups are investing in the research that will provide the key data specifiers need-life cycle assessments, whole life costings, and service life, creating a new competitive platform and some interesting facts and figures.

The American hardwood industry starts from a pretty strong position. American hardwoods come from rural communities that have been managing forests for generations in a way that maintains their biodioversity, productivity and regenerative capacity. Harvesting is low intensity and small scale simply because most of the hardwood forests are owned by families and individuals rather than by large timber corporations. After harvesting, these forest owners rely on the natural regeneration brought about by the fertile soils of the United States and not on chemical fertilizers or genetically modified species.

It is this kind of responsible forest management that results in new tree growth and the continued sequestration of carbon. The conversion of the wood into products such as flooring contributes to the long-term removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping to reduce greenhouses gases and global warming.

Our industry is under the regular scrutiny of the U.S. federal government, which carries out regular and thorough forest surveys. These show that American hardwoods are not only renewable, but are actually an expanding resource. The volume of hardwood standing in American forests has, in fact, doubled in the last 50 years as harvesting levels remain well below the level of growth. And the U.S. Forest Service forecasts indicate further increases of 15 to 2OVo over the next 20 years.

There have been a number of studies done in the U.S. on the environmental impacts of hardwoods. In 2008, the National Wood Flooring Association Industry Research Foundation and the Consortium for Research on Renewable Materials conducted a life-cycle analysis study of wood flooring that evaluated solid strip hardwood flooring against other flooring alternatives such as vinyl, linoleum and carpet. The CORRIM study concluded that wood flooring had the least environmental impact of all the other materials studied.

American hardwoods provide a huge choice-there over 20 species for a wide range of applications, including, of course, flooring.

Inevitably,I get asked the question about the CO' emissions related to the transport of American hardwoods overseas. With the largest part of this transport chain done by sea, the CO2 emissions are minimal. But like many other industries, we are undertaking more detailed research to provide the facts and figures that confirm the case for American hardwoods as the natural choice in a world where sustainability has become the watchword for all our customers.

- David Venables is European director for the American Hardwood Export Council, www.americanhardwood.org.

By fames Olsen