FSC Certified timber - the sustainable construction solution - LJN Blog Posts

The impact that the building and construction trade has on the environment is becoming more and more of a concern as we become increasingly aware of the pressures that society can have on the world we live in. Silva Timber understand the impact that forestry has on the environment and ensures that all of our timber is legally sourced from well managed forests, protecting both biodiversity and the indigenous people's rights.Increasingly, customers are specifying sustainable products due to ethical and environmental concerns, Silva Timber are committed to the pursuit of best practice in the sourcing of our timber. By specifying sustainable timber such as decking, wall cladding or roofing shingles, homeowners can help make their home less carbon reliant, enhance energy efficiency and help protect the natural environment.Supported by leading environmental & social organisations including WWF, Greenpeace & Nature Conservancy, one way to guarantee the safeguarding of our forests is to specify FSC Certified timber for construction projects and builds wherever possible.We're proud of our links with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and are pleased that a host of our timber products are available with FSC Certification.The FSC label provides a credible link between responsible production and consumption of forest products, enabling consumers and businesses to make purchasing decisions that benefit people and the environment as well as providing ongoing business value.FSC is the fastest growing certification system in the world, with 280 million acres of FSC forests now worldwide.One of the underlying principles for FSC Certification is to reduce the environmental impact of logging activities and maintenance of the ecological functions and integrity of the forest. By specifying FSC timber, customers help protect the natural forests for the future, providing continuous, sustainable timber supplies.Not only does FSC protect the forest’s future, but also the indigenous people living in and around the forest. Aboriginal peoples control the forest management on their lands and territories, which never threatens or diminishes their resources or tenure rights. FSC promotes strong, healthy communities and provides sustainable economies in those areas.The FSC Chain of Custody allows timber purchase to be tracked the production process - from the forest to the consumer, including all successive stages of processing, transformation, manufacturing and distribution. This transparent and independent verification of the source of forest products allows for supreme confidence that timber has originated from sustainable, responsible forest management.While all timber from Silva is legally sourced from well managed forests, we recognise the importance that the FSC certification holds in the construction industry and are increasing our stocks of certified timber. Our current FSC product range includes Western Red Cedar decking, cladding, shingles and fencing; Sucupira hardwood decking, Eastern White Cedar shingles and Siberian Larch cladding.Silva Timber are committed to providing the highest quality timber in the UK from the world’s sustainable forests. For more information on FSC certification or our product range visit http://www.silvatimber.co.uk

Hi Chris, thanks for your comments.

FSC certainly isn't the only route for supplying sustainable timber, all of our timber is sourced from well managed forests and suppliers who match our own ethical and environmental views, whether they are FSC certified or not.

We're finding an increasing amount of architects will specify FSC timber for larger builds and feel this trend will continue.

I agree though that FSC certification isn't the only way for sustainable timber to enter the supply chain, ultimately the more timber that is sourced from well managed forests the better for everyone concerned and the latest EU legislation against illegal timber importing, while not perfect, is another step in the right direction.

I would love to hear if anyone has had an experience of paving being pushed up because of the hot and dry weather this summer. We have had a number of patios where this has become a problem (a couple we laid ourselves and quite a few more where…

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Comments

chris nangle July 21, 2010 at 4:21pm

Over all I Am in favour of the fsc in principle, but speaking as a business that only uses local sustainable timber, I would never go down the fsc road as I feel its another huge paper chain and far to much bureaucracy for a small business to get through.
I am not the only one lots of my local mills have dropped any certification for the paper chain reason .
http://www.chrisnanglefurniture.co.uk only use local hardwoods from sustainable woodlands.
David Smither July 22, 2010 at 10:35am

Hi Chris, thanks for your comments.

FSC certainly isn't the only route for supplying sustainable timber, all of our timber is sourced from well managed forests and suppliers who match our own ethical and environmental views, whether they are FSC certified or not.

We're finding an increasing amount of architects will specify FSC timber for larger builds and feel this trend will continue.

I agree though that FSC certification isn't the only way for sustainable timber to enter the supply chain, ultimately the more timber that is sourced from well managed forests the better for everyone concerned and the latest EU legislation against illegal timber importing, while not perfect, is another step in the right direction.
chris nangle July 22, 2010 at 5:20pm

hi David
i agree on the whole mate,but my main bugbear is that is once the timber gets to the manufactures you can claim anything is fsc and no one would ever know, I have two huge stacks of 3inch sawn oak at the moment one is fsc the other is local sustainable oak when they are turned into benches it just not possible to tell were the wood is from.
but the move to stop illegal logging has to be supported by all