Category Archives: Wood, Paper & Green Building

Forests are essential to life on Earth. From the air we breathe to the water we drink, forests power our everyday lives. …That’s why this year, HP is contributing $1,000,000 to support forest conservation for World Wildlife Fund (WWF), through the Together We Grow campaign—an initiative to raise awareness about the importance of forest conservation. Forests and printing are interconnected: one provides the resources; the other transforms them into tools for knowledge, creativity, and communication. …As one of the world’s largest print companies, HP recognizes that its business is deeply connected to the well-being of the world’s forests. …The company requires recycled or sustainably certified fiber for all HP-brand paper and paper-based packaging for home and office printers, supplies, PCs, and displays, with a preference for Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) certification, ensuring that its products support responsible forest management.

Nature-based infrastructure (NBI) delivers essential services like flood protection, water regulation, and climate resilience, but remains difficult to finance because its value shows up as avoided costs, not direct revenue. Drawing on 45 assessments across 29 countries, this report shows that for every USD invested, NBI delivers USD 3.21 in benefits, and sets out how to finance it at scale.  Nature-based infrastructure (NBI), such as wetlands, forests, coastal systems, and urban green spaces, is increasingly recognized as a viable alternative to conventional “grey” infrastructure. NBI delivers essential services such as flood protection, water regulation, and climate resilience, while also restoring ecosystems and supporting local livelihoods. Despite this potential, NBI remains difficult to finance. Its value often shows up as avoided costs and co-benefits rather than direct revenue, making it hard to fit into conventional infrastructure appraisal and budgeting.  IISD has spent five years building the evidence base to close this gap. 

LONDON — With rising expectations to prove material origin, a new report from  Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) UK emphasises responsible sourcing as a major component in purchasing decisions. The survey of 1,280 UK adults found that 68% consider responsibly sourced materials important when buying products, while 67% trust reputable certification labels to help avoid misleading environmental claims. Three quarters of consumers surveyed said they would be likely to choose an FSC-certified product over an uncertified alternative, compared with 11% who said they would be unlikely to do so. …Rosie Teasdale, Executive Director of FSC UK, says: “These findings show that credible, independent certification is not only helping consumers make informed choices, but also helping brands build trust, strengthen their reputation and meet growing expectations around sustainability.” …73% of UK consumers recognise the FSC logo, rising to 82% among 25- to 34-year-olds. Meanwhile, 46% say they have at least some understanding of what the label represents.

Work to increase the use of timber in construction in Ireland has entered the “next phase” with the first meeting of a group tasked with delivering on this government ambition taking place. …The group is responsible for delivering the seven priority recommendations from a report by the Timber in Construction Steering Group. 

The report’s recommendations were:

• Develop national specification for the use of mass engineered timber (MET);
• Establish an interim national centralised procurement … to support compliance with building regulations;
• Lead by example at government-level, designing and building in timber;
• Set embodied carbon targets and require whole life cycle assessments at design stage and within procurement processes;
• Support the establishment of a Timber Knowledge Development and Innovation Facility;
• Support the integration of timber as a fundamental component in the curriculum in architecture and engineering;
• Incentivise an increase in MET construction.

The future of Türkiye’s forest products industry was examined at the Future of the Forest Products Industry Workshop 2026, held on 17 September at TÜYAP Fair and Congress Center in Istanbul. Organised by ORSİAD Newspaper, the workshop brought together representatives from forestry, manufacturing, certification, academia and industry to discuss raw material supply, sustainability, production and international competitiveness. A central theme was the contrast between Türkiye’s significant forest resources and the cost pressures facing its wood products sector. Speakers highlighted the country’s position as a major producer of MDF and particleboard, while also calling for greater recycling, innovation and value-added production. …For Türkiye’s forest products industry, the next phase may therefore depend on how effectively its existing forest resources can be managed, recovered and transformed into products capable of competing in increasingly demanding international markets.

EUROPE — The European Federation of Wooden pallet and Packaging Manufacturers (FEFPEB) fully supports the PPWR’s objectives to strengthen circularity and promote reuse.However, following our review of the work concerning wooden pallets, we have seriousconcerns that the current assessment does not adequately reflect how pallet reuse operates inpractice or provide a sufficiently representative basis for establishing a mandatory minimumnumber of rotations.  For the reasons set out in the attached statement, FEFPEB does not support the introduction ofa mandatory minimum rotation requirement for wooden pallets on the basis of the currentassessment. In particular, we believe that the evidence base and methodology should bereassessed, with meaningful involvement of the wooden pallet sector, before any suchrequirement is considered. Wooden pallets already operate within mature systems of repeated use, repair, reconditioning,and recycling across Europe. Their circular performance cannot always be captured through individual rotation counts.

• Related in the Economist: The EU’s new packaging rules are a bureaucratic bungle

Timber traders, pallet makers, and furniture suppliers selling into Europe will not have to trace bamboo, rattan, or used and second-hand wood to a forest plot after the European Commission’s rewrite of the EU Deforestation Regulation’s product list came into force on Friday. That is according to Delegated Regulation 2026/2102, which now excludes used and second-hand goods under the headings for logs, sawn timber, plywood, joinery, and furniture. “The same applies to components of relevant products covered by those codes if they qualify as waste, used or second-hand products,” the act states. Reclaimed timber built into new furniture or joinery is therefore out, with the Commission adding the exclusion because the old wording risked “discouraging circular and resource efficient practices”. …By contrast, sawmill chips and sawdust under heading 4401 get no used-goods exclusion, and fall outside the regulation only where they qualify as waste under the EU’s Waste Framework Directive or serve as single-use packing.

Wood-based floor slab passes load test: Researchers at the University of Stuttgart have tested a compact, flexible, and cost-effective floor slab system for multi-story timber buildings. The “UniversalTimberSlab” is scheduled to be installed soon at the “Zukunftsforum” in the German town of Oberkochen. Reinforced concrete floor slabs account for about 40 percent of buildings’ embodied carbon emissions. However, until now, there has been no practical alternative for complex, multi-story buildings. Using a construction demonstrator, researchers at the University of Stuttgart have now shown for the first time how floor slabs can be built sustainably from an innovative timber-concrete composite system. The demonstrator, which was tested in June as part of the Future Cleantech Festival in Remscheid, showcases “UniversalTimberSlab” – the first point-supported timber-concrete composite flat slab for two-way long spans. “With the UniversalTimberSlab, we aim to make multi-story timber-concrete composite construction significantly more flexible, performative, and adaptable. 

AkzoNobel is marking World Green Building Week with the launch of ‘The case for wood in more sustainable buildings’, a new whitepaper developed in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam. The whitepaper examines how responsibly sourced and properly protected timber can support lower-carbon building choices while delivering durability, robust performance and architectural quality. It also demonstrates how material selection and protective coating systems can work together to help reduce a building’s overall lifecycle carbon footprint. The whitepaper presents findings from a comparative lifecycle assessment of panels and window frames made from wood and aluminium, steel and PVC. …The analysis found that wood-based façades and window frames had lower cradle-to-grave carbon footprints than the non-wood alternatives. The study also shows that the substrate is the primary driver of total carbon emissions, while coatings contribute a relatively small share ranging from 4% to 37% of the assessed footprint depending on the material and application.

At Stora Enso’s mill in Varkaus, Finland, recovered cardboard packaging is converted into new fibre raw material. The same fibre can be recycled up to 7 times before it becomes too short and weak for further use. The site contains Finland’s largest recycled-fibre processing facility. Covering approximately 3 hectares, it receives used packaging from households, retailers and packaging manufacturers. More than 95 per cent of paperboard and cardboard packaging is recycled in Finland. However, domestic collections do not provide enough material for the mill, which also imports recovered packaging from Sweden and the Baltic countries. Approximately 20 truckloads of recovered material arrive at the site each day. The compressed bales contain products such as milk cartons, pizza boxes and cereal packages.

For decades, architectural sustainability was dominated by operational performance. Better insulation, efficient mechanical systems, photovoltaic panels, passive solar strategies, and high-performance envelopes became the principal instruments for reducing environmental impact. Those measures remain important, but they no longer describe the entire carbon problem. A building can perform efficiently in operation while carrying an enormous historical carbon burden embedded in its concrete frame, steel reinforcement, glass, aluminum, masonry, finishes, foundations, and infrastructure. Once these materials have been manufactured, transported, assembled, and incorporated into a structure, their associated emissions cannot simply be erased by installing efficient equipment. This is where the concept of material memory becomes architecturally significant. Existing buildings contain not only physical material but also the emissions already invested in producing that material. Retaining a structural frame therefore represents more than preservation. It can function as a form of carbon avoidance.

The United Kingdom Alliance for Sustainable Building Products (ASBP) has launched an international project to develop practical guidance for managing water and moisture risk throughout the lifecycle of mass timber buildings. Funded by the Softwood Lumber Board (SLB) and Swedish Wood, the project will bring together existing research and industry expertise to address how moisture risks can be prevented, detected and managed across the design, construction and operation of timber buildings. The guidance will cover the full building lifecycle, from design and manufacture through construction and occupation to maintenance and eventual reuse. It is intended to provide a common framework for architects, engineers, contractors, manufacturers, insurers, investors and building owners. …The new project builds on the Mass Timber Insurance Playbook, published by ASBP in 2023 to help project teams and insurers address risks associated with mass timber buildings. It was republished in 2024, while a US edition was adapted by WoodWorks with support from the SLB.

Press Release, August 3, 2026, by Alliance for Sustainable Building Products: New international project to develop guidance on managing water and moisture risk in mass timber buildings

Subhra Bhattacharjee

Europe is scaling up its timber industry, but unsustainable growth could prove disastrous. According to the European Commission, the construction sector is responsible for over 35% of the EU’s total waste generation. …Dr. Bhattacharjee, director general of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) joined Angela Barnes to discuss whether Europe can scale up its sustainable timber industry and achieve its construction goals. With deadlines looming and environmental policy tightening, a clear shift towards the use of timber is under way in Europe …“There need not be a quality compromise, because recent innovations in engineered wood creates stronger and more versatile structures,” Subhra explained. And Subhra is confident it’s only going to get better as innovation continues. …“What would be an ideal scenario would be low-carbon cement, recycled steel and construction timber complementing in bringing down the carbon footprint of the entire sector and contributing to low-cost housing that is needed.”

Researchers have developed a phosphorus-free and formaldehyde-free lignin-derived phenolic resin that combines intrinsic flame retardancy, robust adhesion and effective fire protection when applied as a coating on wood. The material offers a sustainable alternative to conventional petroleum-based phenolic resins. Conventional petroleum-derived phenolic resins face growing scrutiny due to sustainability concerns, inherent flammability and limited adhesion durability. In response, a recent study introduces a lignin-derived phenolic resin, designated SALG-PR, that is both phosphorus-free and formaldehyde-free. The material …delivers a fully bio-based network with multifunctional performance. The resin exhibits notable intrinsic flame retardancy, reaching a UL-94 V-0 rating and a limiting oxygen index (LOI) of 62.4 %, values comparable to established petroleum-based resins and to previously reported bio-based flame-retardant materials. Direct exposure to a butane torch for 300 s did not lead to burn-through, and infrared thermography confirmed effective localisation of heat within the flame-impinged region, indicating a strong barrier effect.

Finnish firm Elementic has unveiled MO6, a wall-surfacing material produced from forestry industry offcuts that is almost pure carbon. Called MO6, the product takes the form of thick, lightweight tiles with a rough texture and an off-black colour. Materials technology company Elementic established MO6 as a brand in May, with the debut collection, MO6 Eternal, launched on Wednesday at trade fair Habitare. MO6 claims to be the most carbon-negative, or carbon-storing, building material in the world, with carbon molecules making up 90 per cent of its chemistry. It uses lignin as a raw material – a by-product of the forestry and timber industry that is considered difficult to use and is usually burned for energy. Through a patented process that remains highly secretive, impurities such as oxygen are removed from the lignin in a bioreactor to result in a material that is highly durable and fire-resistant with a dramatic aesthetic.

The Canada Wood Market Insights has these headlines and more:

• New 90-Minute Fire Approvals Advance Midrise 2×4 Construction in Japan 
  On June 30 MLIT jointly awarded Canada Wood Japan and the Japan 2×4 Home Builders Association Ministerial Approvals for 90 minute fire-resistant exterior and interior wall assemblies. 
• Samsung Accelerates Entry into Korea’s Modular Housing Market
  South Korea’s modular housing market is attracting the country’s largest electronics companies. 
• Wood Reconnecting Beijing’s Past and Future
  Beijing’s Xixinglong Street renewal shows how modern wood construction can support the regeneration of historic neighbourhoods. 
• Timber Construction Moves Toward Value Creation in Japan’s Commercial Building Market
   Japan’s large timber buildings are beginning to move beyond showcase projects and into mainstream commercial development.
• Japan’s Hybrid Timber Buildings Find a Practical Middle Ground
  Japan’s timber construction market is increasingly finding growth through hybrid systems rather than replacing concrete and steel outright. 

Wind turbines are a powerful alternative to fossil fuels, with wind power now accounting for about 10.5% of all utility-scale electricity generated in the United States. In Germany, the combination of wind and solar power has passed fossil fuels as the nation’s top electric generators. But the environmental impact of wind turbines and their massive blades cuts both ways. The blades are generally made of reinforced fiberglass, a material that is strong, light, and durable. They can last 20 to 30 years. But they’re so difficult to recycle that Europe came up with an unexpected new job for old wind turbines: Pedestrian bridge girders. A company in Germany has a solution that could make the recycling process easier. Voodin Blade Technology made 63-foot wind turbine blades from laminated veneer lumber (LVL). It’s not a completely new idea. In the 1980s, NASA approached Michigan boatbuilders Gougeon Brothers about applying their wood-composite techniques to wind turbines.

Metsä Group has selected Valmet to deliver a 3D Fiber molded fiber production line for their mill in Äänekoski, Finland. The investment responds to growing demand for alternatives to replace plastics by enabling high-volume industrial production of three-dimensional fiber-based packaging that is competitive with similar plastic solutions. This investment marks a significant milestone as the world’s first commercial-scale implementation of the innovation. …The start-up of the line is scheduled for 2028. …Valmet 3D Fiber technology enables the production of lightweight yet rigid end products, including trays, plates, and food packaging containers, offering alternatives to plastic. The technology uses cellulose fibers to form ready-to-use, three-dimensional products directly from pulp, eliminating the need for intermediate steps.