Sustaining the Balance of Life

Put simply, we cannot survive on this planet without forests. By practising ethical sustainable timber harvesting, we use forestry management to help our forests to regulate the global climate and produce the oxygen we need to survive.

Forests absorb nearly 40 percent of the fossil-fuel emissions humans produce. Turning away from ethical forestry increases the overall output of carbon, leaving a higher abundance of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, putting everyone at risk.

The days of deforestation without consideration of its effect on the environment have taken a great toll, both in Australia and across the world. Many governments around the world agree that global warming presents a significant threat to mankind in the next one hundred years.

What’s all the Fuss About Carbon?

Carbon is the main culprit when it comes to greenhouse gases and their impact on climate change. Most processes release carbon into the environment, even ours. We absorb oxygen when we inhale and release carbon in the form of CO2 when we exhale. Trees breathe in a way that is symbiotic with humans and animals. The tree “inhales” CO2 and “exhales” oxygen.

The more CO2 that is in our environment, the faster our climate begins to heat up. The measurement that is currently used to assess our effect on the environment is called the “carbon footprint.”

How Many Trees Do We Need?

Approximately 15 billion trees are being chopped down each year with only 5 billion being replanted. This represents a net loss of 10 billion trees every year. In December 2014, it was estimated by the conservation group Greenpeace that humans have already destroyed 75% of the world’s available forests. This has created an imbalance that is raising the level of carbon in our atmosphere and decreasing the amount of oxygen in our air.

Timber stores carbon by taking it from the environment and turning it into timber cells and fibres. This process is called “sequestering” and means that timber growth actually reduces the amount of carbon in the environment. When a tree produces 1 kg of wood, it “inhales” 1.47 kg of CO2 and “exhales” 1.07 kg of oxygen back into the atmosphere. The carbon that would normally be part of a greenhouse gas is now stored in the tree as wood.

The Magic of Plantation Trees

In a plantation, forestry management ensures sustainable timber trees are harvested at just the right time after they are no longer storing carbon at their peak rate. They are then replaced by new trees, which grow to their peak rate of carbon storage, starting the cycle of life all over again. This is very different from the old model where trees are just chopped out of a forest and not replaced, where their capacity to store carbon is gone forever (known as deforestation).

Forests absorb nearly 40 percent of the fossil-fuel emissions humans produce, which is why we see it as a step in the right direction to harvest our trees responsibly. While approximately 40% of our deforestation is attributed to making space for housing, we must balance this with our need for oxygen, decreasing global warming, preserving natural habitats, minimising soil erosion and flooding.

Some trees gain “maturity” between 10-15 years, while others can take between 20-30 years. During that time, they are assimilating and storing carbon at their fastest rates. Every piece of timber in use continues to store the carbon that it originally sequestered, keeping it from decaying and going back into the environment.

How Timber Compares to Other Materials

To produce a cubic metre (m3) of timber, 15 kg of carbon is released into the environment, but that timber stores 250 kg of carbon. That means every cubic metre of timber removes 235 kg of carbon from the environment.

Meanwhile, a cubic metre of steel releases 5320 kg of carbon into the environment. A cubic metre of concrete releases 900 kg of carbon into the environment. A cubic metre of cement releases a whopping 22,000 kg of carbon into the environment.

Better yet, timber doesn’t have to be replaced like aluminium does. If it is maintained correctly, it lasts much longer than aluminium. In addition, if a timber surface is degraded, it can usually be fixed by refinishing.

When timber does get replaced, it is biodegradable. Aluminium isn’t. While it can be recycled, a lot of carbon is created in the process.

What makes Narangba Timbers sustainable?

At Narangba Timbers, we recognise the National Forest Policy Statement of 1992, a national government statement policy that provides for ethical and sustainable management of timber.

As a responsible and sustainable timber supplier, we ensure our local suppliers harvest timber in certified state native forests, otherwise defined as “state forest areas” and managed private forests that are governed under the Vegetation Management Act 1999. These forest areas are maintained and monitored on a regular basis by DAFF (Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries) and harvesting is completed carefully and meticulously.

When it comes to imported timber species like Merbau, Radiata Pine and / or Cedar, we’re careful to ensure that our import supply partners are also abiding by internationally recognised forestry management practices. As such, we ensure all imported timbers sold through Narangba Timbers are PEFC certified timbers. PEFC certified sustainable wood is an international organisation that promotes good forest supply chain practices that ensure code mark holders supply timber products with respect to the highest ecological, social and ethical standards around the globe.

At Narangba Timbers, we want to do our share to make the world a better place by leaving the environment better than we found it. If you want sustainable timber sourced from ethical sources, mostly based in Queensland, call us today. We are the most ethical Timber Sales Outlet in the Queensland and NSW area with some of the lowest prices in the business. Call us on 1300 477 024.