If there’s one mantra that has anchored the environmental movement since its inception, it’s that trees are good. Good for the environment. Good for biodiversity. And definitely good for the climate. Despite decades of high-tech effort, trees remain one of the most reliable ways to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. So what’s with this paper just published in Nature by environmental non-profit World Resources Institute (WRI), stating that wood consumption accounts for about 10% of the world’s annual greenhouse gas emissions? Could this shake our faith in wood’s role as a climate hero? As ever, the devil is in the details.
- Bad Wood 1. No accounting for waste.2. …A surprisingly large carbon footprint. 3. …A mass of timber issues.
- Good Wood 1. Branching opinions. …2. Measure twice, cut once. 3. Pulp, read, repeat.
- What To Keep An Eye On 1. Lab-grown wood. …2. Rules about whether wood is really renewable. …3. Wood alternatives.
WASHINGTON — Crippling heat waves are an annual fixture in the United States — but it’s not every day the White House announces a detailed strategy to confront them. So far, it’s been an extreme-weather summer across the continent: brutal heat, a barrage of tornadoes, flooding in the U.S. northeast and an unprecedented wildfire season in Canada. This weekend in the U.S. promises to be no different, with temperatures in California’s record-setting Death Valley predicted to reach a scorching 52 C. That’s why the Biden administration is introducing what it calls an “all-of-society response” to help manage a challenge it says is only getting worse. In Ottawa, the federal government is also getting ready with a strategy geared towards helping the most vulnerable, including older Canadians, Indigenous communities, inner-city residents and people who work outside. …Experts in both countries have been pushing their governments to define sustained periods of extreme heat as a natural disaster.
With an increase in extreme climate-related weather events worldwide, including Canada’s record spring forest fire season this year, the urgency of the situation calls for more ambition and international cooperation on climate action to keep the 1.5°C Paris Agreement warming limit within reach and avoid the most catastrophic effects of climate change. Today, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, concluded his participation in the seventh Ministerial on Climate Action (MoCA) in Brussels, Belgium. …Canada stressed the need for new and enhanced concrete actions to reduce emissions, its commitment to an inclusive approach to addressing climate change, the importance of establishing a fund and funding arrangements for loss and damage at COP28, as well as its commitment to make climate and biodiversity action mutually reinforcing following the historic adoption of the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework during COP15. 
A cross-sector group of Japanese companies has invested in a forestry fund created by Japan’s Sumitomo Forestry, aimed at eventually issuing carbon credits through forest management mainly in North America. Sumitomo Forestry said that it had launched the fund, worth around $415 million, in June to manage forests on the east coast of the US and Canada, the west coast of the US and Latin America to create carbon credits. Eastwood Forests and SFC Asset Management, both Sumitomo Forestry group companies, will manage the fund for 15 years. The fund consists of joint investment by nine other Japanese companies. …The forestry fund is expected to generate around 1mn t/yr of carbon credits, which could be used for voluntary and compliance carbon markets, such as through increased forest management and afforestation. Sumitomo Forestry aims to buy around 130,000 hectares of forests with a high conservation value by 2027.
The Province is helping First Nations communities strengthen their resilience to the adverse effects of climate change through the launch of an Indigenous climate-resilience capacity-building pilot program. The Province’s BC Climate Preparedness and Adaptation Strategy has provided $2 million to fund a one-year pilot program that will be delivered by two First Nations organizations with experience delivering environmental programs: the Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative (CFN-GBI) and First Nations Emergency Services Society. …Many First Nations communities and organizations lack the capacity to manage climate risks and pursue adaptation-planning projects and funding. The Province has worked with Indigenous advisory groups to develop this pilot project to provide community supports, such as mentorship, knowledge products, adaptation training and a learning network to advance Indigenous climate resilience.
As drought conditions worsen, with unprecedented levels of drought being observed in British Columbia this early in the season, people and businesses are urged to prioritize water conservation. In B.C., drought levels are measured on a 0-5 scale. Drought Level 5 means it is almost certain that an area will see adverse effects on communities and ecosystems. As of July 13, four of B.C.’s 34 water basins are at Drought Level 5: Fort Nelson, Bulkley Lake, West Vancouver Island and East Vancouver Island. There are 18 water basins at Drought Level 4 – meaning more than two-thirds of these basins are in level 4 or 5. …Every drop counts – people are encouraged to conserve water where possible.:format(jpeg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tgam/M4JVB7AXE5C4XH5EO2SMKBDWSI.JPG)
VANCOUVER, BC – The Government of Canada, the Government of British Columbia, and the First Nations Leadership Council are working together to build a net-zero economy and create good, middle-class jobs across British Columbia. The Canada–British Columbia Regional Energy and Resource Tables is the primary forum for this collaboration. The Regional Energy and Resource Tables are partnerships between the federal government and individual provinces and territories, in collaboration with Indigenous leaders, to align efforts and seize key economic opportunities enabled by the global shift to net zero. The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources; the Honourable Josie Osborne, B.C. Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation; Robert Phillips, Political Executive, First Nations Summit; and Chief Don Tom, Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, announced a groundbreaking Collaboration Framework outlining key areas of collaboration and a range of action items to be pursued. 
A common response to biomass is: how can burning biological matter be sustainable or carbon neutral? But biomass, in terms of its carbon emissions, is conceptually circular. The tree used to produce the biomass has absorbed all the carbon that is released on burning, so over a typical cycle of 30 years, there is no net addition to carbon in the atmosphere, unlike burning fossil fuels. …While there is still a carbon cost of making and transporting pellets, this is a fraction of the carbon released by burning coal or gas. …Although using forestry waste may be dismissed by some as simply burning trees, investors should bear in mind that forest coverage in the US and Canada is stable, and new trees are planted to replace those felled, making this a sustainable resource. North American forestry is a heavily regulated industry with strict environmental standards.
…Over the past two years, several big insurers, including Allstate and State Farm, have scaled back their home insurance businesses in California to avoid paying billions for wildfire damage, or have halted sales of new policies altogether. …Insurance companies in states like Colorado, Louisiana and Florida are paring down business to shield themselves from ballooning losses as climate change fuels more-intense disasters. …insurers say they can’t increase rates enough to cover the damage occurring in the riskiest places. Meanwhile, the cost of disasters keeps going up. People continue moving to regions vulnerable to hurricanes or prone to wildfires. …Given the near-certainty that the impacts of climate change will get worse, experts say it is critical to build homes that are more resilient. …In the future, slowing down or even stopping development in the riskiest areas is ultimately part of the solution to rising insurance losses, experts say.
WASHINGTON — As Speaker Kevin McCarthy visited a natural gas drilling site in northeast Ohio… smoke from Canadian wildfires hung in the air. When was asked about climate change and forest fires, he was ready with a response: Plant a trillion trees. The idea — simple yet massively ambitious — revealed recent Republican thinking on how to address climate change. The party is no longer denying that global warming exists, yet is searching for a response to sweltering summers, weather disasters and rising sea levels that doesn’t involve abandoning their enthusiastic support for American-produced energy from burning oil, coal and gas. …A 2019 study suggested that planting trees to suck up heat-trapping carbon dioxide from the atmosphere could be one of the most effective ways to fight climate change. …But the tree-planting push has drawn intense pushback from environmental scientists who call it a distraction from cutting emissions from fossil fuels.
Attorneys general from 10 states plan to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, saying its failure to review and ensure emissions standards for residential wood-burning stoves has allowed the continued sale of appliances that could worsen pollution. That means programs that encourage people to trade in older stoves and other wood-burning appliances, such as forced-air furnaces, haven’t necessarily improved air quality, the states say. “If newer wood heaters do not meet cleaner standards, then programs to change out old wood heaters may provide little health benefits at significant public cost,” the states wrote Thursday in a 60-day notice of intent to sue. The states involved are Alaska, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington, as well as the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency.
The Energy Futures Initiative (EFI) has released a new report focused on actionable pathways for deploying bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) at scale. The report – 
In the quest for sustainable energy sources, scientists and researchers worldwide are continuously exploring innovative ways to harness energy from natural resources. One such groundbreaking development is the extraction of biofuel from tree bark, a method that is revolutionizing the energy sector and changing the landscape of renewable energy. Tree bark, often considered a waste product in the timber industry, is now being recognized for its potential as a valuable resource for biofuel production. The process involves converting the lignin, a complex organic polymer found in the bark, into bio-oil through a method known as pyrolysis. This transformation is an energy-efficient process that results in a renewable energy source, contributing to the reduction of our reliance on fossil fuels. …Research and development in this field are ongoing, with scientists working tirelessly to improve the efficiency and sustainability of the conversion process. 
Energy subsidies to the UK’s largest renewable power station could be withdrawn if sustainability rules have not been followed, a minister said. The House of Lords heard concerns over the environmental credentials of the Drax-owned site, near Selby, which burns biomass, such as wood pellets. …Drax said it had strict governance in place to oversee compliance. …Labour peer Baroness Jones called for independent scientists to be sent to Canada to verify the sustainability of wood used. …Independent Baroness Boycott referenced information from Canadian environmentalists who said “the ancient forest being destroyed for those wood pellets”. …In response, Lord Callanan said Ofgem was investigating matters and said: “If it is proved that they are not in compliance, then of course some of the value of the certificates will be withdrawn.” He added: “Forgive me if I don’t necessarily take as absolute facts the statements by some of the Canadian environmentalists.