Wood consumption world wide sustainable/unsustainable

[cessna]

With wood consumption increasing worldwide for whatever purpose.Do you think that this ever increasing consumption is sustainable on a global basis?We can plant as many trees as we like but they are all going to grow relatively slowly,wherever in the world they are grown.

[doobin]

It's sustainable with foresight. I mean, that's why the FC was originally set up.

 

Foresight is one thing this country is somewhat lacking in these days, however.

 

As for sustainable as a fuel, I'd be interested to see the calculations as regards land required to heat every home with a woodburner.

 

Possibly far better efficiency to be had from local CHP plants?

[County 764]

Agree with above.

 

There's also a huge amount of hill ground that could sustain productive planting but its difficult to get approval for new planting sites with so many SSSI's & SPA's. The NFU has hit back at the Forestry Commission for planting up grade 1 farmland and I think has put a halt to it. Its interesting to look at the Land Information Search on the Commissions website as it highlights the lack of hill ground that hasn't got some designation.

[Goaty]

Not sustainable when fueled by greed ,corporate giants playing the green card. It's all down to profit or they would be out. However if waste stream was done properly it could work. Lots get burn on site clearance also if less was chipped, just the30mm down grade, useful fuel wood above that size. We use it for z quick heat increase on very cold days.

 

 

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[sandspider]

I worked out very roughly a while ago that I'd need around 5 acres of trees to provide enough wood to continually fulfill all my heating, cooking etc. needs just from wood. (3 bed detached house, no clever pellet boilers or anything, just log burners). So we'd probably need more than the land area of the UK devoted to woodland to keep us all going just on wood! So we might get hungry!

 

Having said that, with more efficient burning systems, better insulation, maybe planting different tree species etc. that could probably be improved upon. And warmer countries would need less heat so less wood. But colder countries would need more heat and grow more slowly... Interesting question.

[se7enthdevil]

depends what the end use is really. in this day and age using chainsaws and tree harvesters we've not chopped them all down yet..

 

 

my personal opinion is that every tree should be milled, the branches go for firewood and once the planks have been used they can be recycled in to new furniture and if past recycling then they can go on the fire...

 

i don't like every tree going through processors for firewood when it can be put to other uses first...

 

 

cant people put another layer on before reaching for the matches???

 

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[SamWhiting12]

depends what the end use is really. in this day and age using chainsaws and tree harvesters we've not chopped them all down yet..

 

 

my personal opinion is that every tree should be milled, the branches go for firewood and once the planks have been used they can be recycled in to new furniture and if past recycling then they can go on the fire...

 

i don't like every tree going through processors for firewood when it can be put to other uses first...

 

 

cant people put another layer on before reaching for the matches???

 

.

 

If the milling market was worth the money for harvesters, then that's where the wood would go, unfortunately biomass is much more lucrative. Even though a fair amount of wood being harvested around us is grade and any decent wood is taken saw mill, everything else is sold for biomass.

 

But also firewood is a tiny percentage of the biomass market, so your wrong in saying everything goes through a processor.

[County 764]

There's a good article on this very subject on the inside front cover of the Forestry Journal. Well worth a read.

 

You'll always get unmillable timber and can expect at least 30% chip wood from a conifer clear fell. That material has traditionally gone to the panel board and pulp industry which don't have the grant assistance that the biomass users do.