The new government could help revive forestry by favouring wooden buildings, the Wood Council of New Zealand says. Commercial forestry has been struggling and there are concerns about the environmental impact of cement and steel. Wood Council chairman Brian Stanley said the new administration was well placed to help. “Modern high rise buildings can be built of wood. They are doing it all over the world now – 16, 20, 30 storeys high,” he said. “There is no reason why when the government is building new schools or office blocks they can’t use wood that is currently going offshore.” …Three foreign thinktanks, Climate Analytics, Ecofys and NewClimate Institute, found the construction sector could not meet the climate goals agreed at the Paris climate accord using current technology for steel and cement.