Wood is a renewable resource if it is harvested in a sustainable manner. What types of woods are called sustainable?  The most popular types of sustainable woods are bamboo, cane (both of which are considered grasses), the mango tree, (which is a great fruit by the way), and the American favorite, maple.  Did you know that a maple tree could grow up to 18” in a year and who doesn’t love maple syrup!  For sustainable wood, look for recycled wood products, or wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as coming from well-managed forests.

 Trees are a major reason why we are able to survive on this planet.  We eat their fruit, we construct with their bounty and we breath their oxygen-(O2) while they help rid the planet of dangerous and ever present CO2.  That is why we need to make sure that the wood we use is stamped FSC or is one of the above-mentioned sustainable woods.

If you buy any lumber this weekend or even if you don’t, go out and plant a tree.  Just think everybody planted a tree tomorrow, that would be 6 billion trees.  Not bad for a days work.

Tags: forest stewardship council, fsc, hard wood, lumber, old growth trees, recycled wood