There is a lot of buzz about green building these days. Competing rating systems and certified products of all kinds are being marketed, all with various standards and protocols for record keeping and sustainable forestry practices. If you have the time to spend, there is no shortage information to digest. But some simple facts about wood that make it an inherently responsible choice for use in construction for timber framing, floors, windows, doors, trim and more.

• Wood grows in a forest. A natural environment that supports a multitude of species and uses.
• Wood is a renewable resource. With proper forest management, we will never run out.
• Wood is 100% recyclable.
• Wood is a natural product with no associated toxins or off-gassing.
• Kept dry, wood retains its’ structural integrity potentially forever.

The production of wood sequesters carbon and is incredibly energy efficient compared to other building materials. Compared to the energy required to produce a ton of wood, it takes:
• 5 times more energy to produce 1 ton of cement
• 14 times more energy to produce 1 ton of glass.
• 24 times more energy to produce 1 ton of steel.
• 126 times more energy to produce 1 ton of aluminum.
• Wood products make up 47% of all industrial raw materials manufactured in the U.S, yet consume only 4% of the total energy needed to manufacture all industrial raw materials.

When we dig in, we find more involved methods for measuring environmental impact. One is called life cycle costing. This process attempts to measure and compare the environmental costs of different materials from cradle to grave. Models compare wood, steel, and concrete beginning at resource extraction, then through manufacturing, on-site construction, building occupancy, building demolition, and ultimately to the building material’s disposal, reuse, or recycling. Based on the findings one model produces the following figures.

Sustainability Attribute Wood Steel Concrete
Total energy use Lowest 140% more 70% more
Greenhouse gases Lowest 45% more 81% more
Air pollution Lowest 42% more 67% more
Water pollution Lowest 1900% more 90% more
Solid waste Lowest 36% more 96% more
Ecological resource use Lowest 16% more 97% more

Considering its high insulating properties, recycling and resource recovery rates, and low pollution rates in harvesting and milling, wood is shown to be the most sustainable and environmentally friendly building material of the three under review.

By any measure, wood construction is fundamentally a green endeavor.