Category: Reconnecting People and Forests

Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Reimagining Our Cities
Carbon + Climate Change, Cities, Forest Management

Tree Equity: We all deserve trees!

The benefits of a healthy urban forest should be available to all.

Author: Alec Sabatini / ed. Rae Tamblyn

Alec is the content writer at PlanIT Geo™, a global urban forestry consulting and tree management software firm.

In the last few years, the phrase “tree equity” has become a cornerstone in urban forestry discussions and beyond, receiving significant media attention. Tree equity encourages urban foresters, urban planners, community leaders, homeowners, and us readers to ask two vital questions: 

  1. How equally are trees distributed within a community? 
  2. How can we ensure everyone has access to the wonderful benefits of living near trees? 

 

TL;DR: Trees are great for people and planet! But, city and neighborhood trees are highly concentrated in affluent, white neighborhoods and sparse in communities of color and low income. We can specifically map and plan the next generations of urban forest plantings to make trees - and their benefits - more equitable. 

The Roots Of Urban Forest Inequity

How did we end up with such an uneven distribution of trees? A key factor was redlining, a discriminatory housing policy that limited home ownership and wealth creation for racial minorities. Areas with higher investment had more green space for the houses, more trees planted for neighborhood beautification, and more money invested in tree care (pruning, watering, etc.)

Studies of 37 metropolitan areas show that areas deemed “too risky” for housing loans in the 1930s still have sparse tree cover today. Although redlining ended in the 1970s and other urban planning decisions rooted in systemic racism have been phased out of development plans, trees have grown slowly. These urban forest canopies still reflect and embody past planting decisions.

The Health Implications of Tree Disparity

Forests make our lives better

This isn’t just about looks; it’s a serious health concern for residents and city leaders alike.  In fact, urban forests are an essential part of our neighborhood health infrastructure. Trees create a host of meaningful, measurable benefits. Collectively known as “ecosystem services,” trees and urban forests are critical to making our cities livable and sustainable. Trees provide many physical and mental health benefits. Neighborhoods with fewer trees face hotter temperatures, poorer air quality, and fewer places for recreation, leading to serious health consequences. A full list of urban forest ecosystem services runs long, but here are some of the essential benefits:

  • Cooling Our Cities:

Trees are on the front lines of the battle against extreme urban heat, which as of 2022 is the number one cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S. Trees can drastically lower surface and air temperatures through shade and evapotranspiration (the exchange of water with air).

  • Cleaning our Air:

Trees are sometimes known as a city's lungs, but they can also act as the liver. Urban forests can remove tons (not metaphorically, literally thousands of pounds) of air pollution every year by absorbing gasses through leaves and trapping particulates out of the air.

  • Cleaning our water:

Trees improve water quality and support stormwater management through rainfall interception and infiltration (water absorbed by the soil). Stormwater infrastructure is not cheap. Cities, especially those with combined sewer systems, are turning to trees and urban forests as an effective, affordable answer to handle heavy rains as seen through the installation of rain gardens and bio-swales.

  • Improving our Health:

Trees support physical health via improved air, water, and urban temperatures, but they also offer well-evidenced mental health support. Having easy access to trees or even views of trees helps reduce stress, aid recovery, and enhance our well-being. The COVID pandemic made this connection especially clear.

  • Improving our Planet’s Health:

A tree pulls carbon dioxide from the air as it grows to make food and oxygen (sequestration) and stores it in roots, trunks, leaves, and soil (storage). We have a carbon issue, and urban and community trees can help offset our carbon emissions, transforming our cities from carbon problems to carbon solutions, one tree at a time.

So how do we know where to plant new trees?

Communities use urban tree canopy (UTC) assessments. These assessments use satellite or aerial imagery to pinpoint where trees and green spaces exist. UTC assessments map existing tree canopy and layer that with other geolocated data, including race/ethnicity, income, and public health metrics. This spotlights where trees are lacking for certain groups of people and where expanding the tree canopy could have the greatest impact on living conditions.

American Forests’ Tree Equity Score is a free tool that measures tree canopy equity. It uses factors like existing tree cover, population density, income, employment, race, and urban heat islands to create a score from 0 to 100. The lower the score, the greater the need for tree investment to ensure all residents benefit from a nearby urban forest.

The tool can also be used to set targets, determine relative need, and calculate benefits of trees planted, all of which can be included in dynamic reports. “Tree Equity Score equips community leaders and urban forestry professionals with accessible and powerful data to tell stories, plan for investment, and make decisions about where trees are needed most. Paired with political will, strong and inclusive coalitions, and shared stewardship of urban forests, this information is helping to change the game for Tree Equity” said Alana Tucker, Senior Director of the Tree Equity Alliance at American Forests.

Tree planters and planners can also follow the 3-30-300 "rule" -  a set of guidelines for urban forestry that aims to increase equitable access to nature and improve health and well-being. The 3-30-300 rule is based on the idea that urban forests and other urban nature can contribute to psychosocial health and well-being.

  • 3 trees: Every person should be able to see at least three trees from their home, workplace, or place of learning
  • 30% canopy: Neighborhoods should have a minimum of 30% tree canopy cover
  • 300 meters: Everyone should live within 300 meters (about a five-minute walk) of a high-quality green space 

Shifting Perceptions

Tools like the Tree Equity Score and increased access to tree canopy data are raising awareness about unbalanced tree cover. Media coverage has spread the concept, and government leaders are shifting their planning and prioritization of urban trees and equitable planning. People are starting to see urban trees as a right, not a luxury.

This shift in perspective has led to the unprecedented allocation of billions of dollars for the US Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program. Most of these funds will go towards tree planting and urban forest management in disadvantaged communities. Urban forest managers now use equity as a key measure in their planning. Data from equity tools helps communicate the problem, secure funding, protect existing trees, and plant new ones. Correcting these imbalances takes time, but with passionate urban forestry professionals, great data tools, and increased funding, we can make meaningful progress.

Our cities, communities, and climate are better with trees. Growing equitable urban canopies ensures that the benefits of a healthy urban forest contribute to the well-being of all people and our one planet.

Together, we can make a difference. Find a local tree planting near you! Take a #TreeSelfie and tag #TreeEquity #forestproud.

We can’t wait to dive deeper into some of these topics in the future! Let us know:

  • What are you and/or your organization doing to advance tree equity?
  • What questions do you have about urban forests and urban forestry?
  • What stories from the sector should we cover in future blogs?

Shoot us a note: info@forestproud.org.

Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Innovation, Mass Timber, Sustainability

Wood Innovations

This Earth Day, we’re wading into the great Planet Vs. Plastic debate. And we’re #foresproud to throw in behind Planet, just like we do all the other days of the year.

Read this next
Forest 101
Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products

Wood Innovation Following Natural Disasters

Even before its release date in June 2024, the remake of Twisters was one of the year’s biggest cinematic moments. All spring, our feeds were full of tornado anticipation: ads on streaming platforms, new country music hits, gifs shared across social media, and even billboards turned upside down and tattered like a storm had recently rolled through. The global marketing campaign just happened to coincide with what’s often considered peak tornado season in the middle of the United States—an area nicknamed “Tornado Alley”, a place where scenes of leveled homes and clouds of debris swirling mid-air, unfortunately, don’t require CGI technology.

Now that we’re a few months out from the height of Twisters, online conversations have waned. It’s not unlike what happens in the news cycle after disasters hit a local area. But those areas are still recovering long after the headlines fade. Like many post-disaster recovery processes, debris removal can take a long time, and because it comes after the height of the storm, the innovative solutions employed to deal with debris are often overlooked. Across the country, wood product innovations are being scaled to keep debris out of landfills. Salvage wood industries, biochar, bioenergy, and compost are just a few of these innovations in recycling, up-cycling, and wood reuse that help to lighten the environmental impact of natural disasters.

There were a lot of tornadoes this year, and not just in the movies.

The release of Twisters also coincided with the realization that 2024’s tornado season would be one of the worst on record  across the Great Plains and Southeast. In May, a tornado occurred every day somewhere in the country. While some of this activity is consistent with the shift of El Nino to La Nina, rising global temperatures are causing a trend of tornado activity moving eastward into more densely populated areas.

While the definitive impact of climate change on tornadoes remains unknown, the eastward movement of Tornado Alley represents just one aspect of climate change’s multifaceted impact on natural disasters. In some cases, increased global temperatures contribute to more intense disasters like stronger storms or larger wildfires. In other cases, the frequency of disasters is impacted. In the case of tornadoes, a changing climate is causing an unprecedented reckoning with deadly weather events. When the built environment isn’t designed and constructed in consideration of climate, you end up with a big mess, literally.

Disaster debris: An overlooked cost of climate change.

For many of us, carnage where buildings or forests once stood makes for a dramatic storyline, a compelling reason to head to theaters. But for others, these scenes of destruction are the very real fallout of disasters like tornados, hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes. It can be so severe and so messy, that there’s a term to describe the destruction that follows a catastrophic storm, “disaster debris,” and there are entire economies, government processes, and policies around how to deal with it. The full scope of a natural disaster’s physical impact might not be obvious to those living outside of an area especially vulnerable to these events: that side of things wasn’t shown in Twisters.  

It’s easy to hear “debris, think “trash,” and say, “Throw it all away!” But considering the scope and scale of debris left behind after a category five hurricane or magnitude seven earthquake, it's impossible to imagine a landfill large enough to contain it. And there kind of isn’t... Many landfills around the country are projected to fill up within the next two decades.

To put it into perspective, the total disaster debris produced from Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi and Louisiana—only two states out of the seven states with recorded deaths resulting from the storm’s impact—was estimated at 72 million cubic meters. That’s enough debris to fill over 70 football stadiums or to cover 18,000 acres with 1 meter of trash.  

It’s true that much—too much—of disaster debris ends up in landfills. In many cases, there’s no other choice: a significant portion of debris is single-use by design or too destroyed to be recycled. But sometimes, it’s just because there’s no existing process for recycling the materials. That’s often the case with woody debris—downed trees, tree limbs, wood from buildings and other sources—which can be recycled and SHOULD be recycled wherever possible. When landfilled instead of recycled, woody debris decays and generates carbon dioxide and, worse, methane, a greenhouse gas over 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Diverting woody debris from landfills could be a key step in meeting emissions goals while creating additional opportunities for communities to rebuild and regrow.

Where there’s wood, there’s a way.

Downed trees might be the image most of us associate with heavy storms. Of all disaster debris, about 30% is vegetative wood waste—that's untreated, completely recyclable wood ready to be reclaimed and reimagined.

Innovations in wood recycling play an important role in mitigating the financial costs and climate impacts of disaster debris. When trees come down in a community, they rarely get a second life. 15 to 30 million tons of urban and community wood is wasted nationally every year. This wood ends up in landfills, releasing carbon into the atmosphere as the wood slowly rots away. 

Following natural disasters, urban and community wood utilization and recycling efforts divert wood from waste streams and landfills, decreasing carbon emissions while creating value and driving new markets. 

 

Urban_Wood_Video_Quotes_Horizontal_2

Salvage wood: From trash to treasure.

Salvaging wood for high-quality products is tough work, but it's a rich opportunity, especially following disasters. Reclaiming woody debris and transforming it into works of wooden art reimagines downed trees as resources and solutions. Salvaging wood reduces wood waste, creates jobs in underserved communities, and stores carbon in long-lived wood products.

Because, after all, in a capitalist society, if we don’t value something, there’s no value in it. Right? Right.

As we mentioned, removing and managing disaster debris is a massive financial undertaking. Offsetting these costs requires some creative thinking and a willingness to explore new markets. 

#forestproud friends are leading urban wood efforts.

In California, Street Tree Revival and Deadwood Revival Design, two woodworking and lumber companies, are working exclusively with urban trees, milling them into usable lumber and slabs. The outcome is beautiful, one-of-a-kind furniture pieces. 

Wood from the Hood and Room & Board also have a great collaborative partnership. Room & Board, a Minnesota-based retailer, is known for its modern elegant furniture lines. In 2023, Room & Board kept the equivalent of over 300 trees out of the waste stream—their goal is to divert the equivalent of 1,000 trees annually by 2025. Since 2008, the Minneapolis-based company Wood From the Hood has been creating custom-made furniture and home goods from reclaimed urban wood. After its high-quality pieces became a fixture in homes and commercial spaces, the business waited for the opportune time to grow and pivot. They imagined a line of furniture that would save more landfill-bound trees, sequester carbon emissions, and supply local homeowners with budget-friendly products. Now a key production partner with Room & Board, Wood From the Hood meets the production needs for many of their high-end furniture lines. 

These companies are just a handful of the growing urban wood network focused on elevating woody waste to its highest and best use. There's a ton of high-quality wood languishing in landfills and waste-streams than is currently used and elevating that wood into high quality furnishings and home decor gives that wood a second life. The artisanal results speak for themselves. Check out #urbanwoodnetwork and #urbanwoodmovement on IG for some lovely examples.  

The Kenwood Bench by Wood from The Hood

Composting: Waste wood that’s good for gardens.

Unfortunately, following especially impactful disasters, wood waste might hardly resemble a log. Think twisted tree limbs, broken branches, and a smattering of twigs. So, salvaging down timber for lumber is sometimes out of the question.

If you have an at-home compost pile, you might know where we’re going with this. Waste wood makes great brown matter! And yard residual industrial compost facilities are poised to handle the scale of vegetative debris following intense weather events. Often, these facilities sell compost or mulch to agricultural or landscaping operations, enriching soil quality and carbon sequestration potential in the process.

While industrial composting and mulching facilities often face challenges sorting contaminated waste, the presence of a facility in at-risk areas is a step closer to ensuring climate-smart recycling of disaster debris.

Bioenergy: Wood that keeps the lights on.

Natural disasters that affect densely populated areas often get the most news coverage. Of course, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires ravage rural locations too, with wide-ranging impacts well beyond the disaster itself. Businesses and communities that depend on natural resources can suffer greatly in the face of these disasters. A single storm system, wildfire, or tornado can shutter local businesses and, sometimes, halt entire local economies. Additionally, those dead, damaged, or dying trees create additional dangers – they can fuel the next round of natural disasters. Removing downed and damaged timber is an essential wildfire mitigation measure known as “fuel reduction.”

Removing blown-down or damaged timber that can’t be used as lumber still provides value to humans and the environment, but it’s often very expensive. Where some people see destroyed timber and expensive recovery projects, we see biomass. We’re talking about organic material rich with potential, especially for creating renewable energy.

Bioenergy is just that: organic material (aka biomass) transformed into transportation fuels, heat, and electricity. Ethanol, biodiesel, and burning to create steam-powered electricity are just a few bioenergy sources sourced from downed timber. Bioenergy can create new renewable sources of energy (trees regrow!) increase the flexibility and reliability of the electric grid and create new markets that help pay for the costs of removing the damaged wood in the first place. Moreover, when bioenergy is burned in a controlled manner, filter technology can remove over 95% of pollutants that would otherwise enter the air.  

There’s a network of existing infrastructure for collecting biomass for bioenergy all around the country. One example is a partnership between Lassen National Forest in Northern California and a nearby power plant, Honey Lake Power. In a single year, the national forest can provide 140,000 dry tons of wood per year—wood collected after fuel reduction projects or destroyed in wildfires—to support local energy production.

Biochar: Turning up the heat on climate solutions.

Biochar_Twitter_v1-1

Energy isn’t the only opportunity for woody debris to make a positive climate impact. It might sound counterintuitive, but we like biomass because it’s full of carbon. One reason we want to make use of it before it can decompose (and emit CO₂ into the atmosphere) is so that we can harness that carbon for
good things, like improving soil quality.

One way to do this is by converting biomass into biochar, a highly porous, charcoal-like substance that’s basically made of carbon. To create biochar, wood is burned at super-high temperatures without the presence of oxygen.

Once mixed into soil, biochar has some pretty magical (actually, very scientific) benefits.

  • Soil aeration
  • Moisture retention
  • Nutrient makeup

On top of this laundry list of benefits, biochar is so pure it doesn’t degrade, meaning it’s a permanent solution for improving soil health and preventing carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. While we are using state-of-the-art technology and new vocabulary words, this concept is not new. Indigenous cultures have used charred organic matter to improve soil quality for thousands of years.

Good in theory, great in practice... But challenges still exist.

Reusing or recycling vegetative waste might be the most straightforward aspect of sustainable debris management. But they still face roadblocks. Community composting efforts efforts often face permitting challenges. Biochar, bioenergy, and artisanal furnishings require infrastructure investments. However, they've proven to be significant climate solutions, and application within disaster debris recycling only exponentially increases their positive impact.

Luckily, there are organizations across the country investing in salvage processes and recycling technologies. The forest sector is one of the leading sources of this innovation, from developing harvesting machines to efficiently extract timber to applying LiDAR, AI, and drone technologies to debris management.

Overcoming financial, technological, and policy barriers associated with wood waste recycling will necessitate greater public understanding and support of potential solutions. Media that carries a cultural impact like that of Twisters is the perfect opportunity for this kind of public education. So, who knows... Maybe we’ll see a sequel that shows the other side of natural disasters: debris management and climate change. Until then, we’ll jump in where the story left off... We can’t promise Jo and Bill get together after the cameras cut, but we can assure you there’s work to be done in the wake of one of the worst tornado years on record, and forest climate solutions are a key part of the cleanup.

That’s #forestproud.

We can’t wait to dive deeper into some of these topics in the future! Let us know:

  • What questions do you have about bioenergy and biochar?
  • What stories from the sector should we cover in future blogs?
  • What are you and/or your organization doing to contribute to waste wood recycling?

Shoot us a note: info@forestproud.org.

Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Innovation, Mass Timber, Sustainability

Wood Innovations

This Earth Day, we’re wading into the great Planet Vs. Plastic debate. And we’re #foresproud to throw in behind Planet, just like we do all the other days of the year.

Read this next
Forest 101
Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products

a #forestproud unboxing experience

Packaging innovations help us shift from plastic to planet
Carbon | Instagram Story | 01_ContentLibrary

Plastics aren’t great for the planet. But when you look at the things we use every day, plastics and petroleum-based products are an essential part of our lives. Wouldn’t it be great if we could replace these unsustainable products with renewable, recyclable, biodegradable, carbon-storing options that are good for the planet – and still functional for our everyday needs?

We’re working on it as a society: consumers are more likely to BYOB[ags] to stores or ask for paper; plastic straws are on their way down; and concerns over single-use plastics are up. We spend a lot of time talking up paper plates, paper cups, compostable cutlery, and other standbys for helping consumers move away from single-use plastic.

How does this work? Micro to Macro 101. 

Before we get too deep down the cool rabbit hole of packaging innovations, let’s touch on a few key #forestproud points.

1. Carbon. All trees capture and store carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere as they grow. They absorb this CO2 during photosynthesis, releasing O2, or oxygen, in their wake. The carbon that is captured by these trees is stored at a cellular level, imbuing this carbon in the wood products we use today. Likewise, as new trees are planted, more atmospheric carbon is captured throughout the growth process for future use.

2. Cellulose. At a cellular level - one millionth the size of the head of a pin - are the microscopic building blocks of a tree. Cellulose is a basic building block of plant cells and is key to keeping plants and trees upright. (Think: those stringy bits in celery, but very, very small.) A single rod-like cellulose nanocrystal is the tiniest building block of wood. Cellulose (and its even smaller form: nanocellulose) is the most abundant biopolymer on the planet. These tiny fibers are full of stored carbon. Because of their structures, nanocellulose materials have a high rate of biocompatibility - meaning they can easily be added to, or combined with, other materials. Nanocellulose drives innovations that help design waste out of an already-efficient sustainable forest management cycle. By leaning into the unique properties of wood and cellulose, we can reduce our dependence on non-renewable resources and move towards a more sustainable future one teeny wood particle at a time.

3. Fiber. Wood fiber and pulp can be reused 5-7 times before it breaks down past the point of being structurally sound. That’s why most manufacturers use a combination of recycled and new wood pulp. After a certain point, the fibers wear out, just like your favorite jeans. But don’t worry – even this frayed fiber has new product potential because we can use it for a source of cellulose, and the sustainable cycle continues, down to the microscopic level.

4. Markets. A strong market for forest products ensures forest landowners can manage their land, pay taxes, keep forests as forests instead of selling land off for parking lots or new developments, pay for new baby trees, and meet wildlife and ecosystem goals like stewarding habitat, reducing wildfire risks, and supporting healthy forests that function as carbon sinks.

 

Why Sustainable Packaging?

Sustainable packaging is a critical component of our future. The paper and packaging industry is stewarding a wave of innovation, enhancing sustainability and functionality and paving the way for an eco-friendlier future. As consumers become increasingly conscious of their environmental footprint, the demand for sustainable packaging solutions will continue to grow. The journey towards sustainable packaging is ongoing, and these innovative solutions are a testament to our society’s demand and commitment to a greener future. By avoiding waste, conserving resources, reducing our global fossil fuels dependency with the associated carbon emissions, and minimizing environmental impact, sustainable packaging can help create a greener, more resilient global economy.

Sustainable packaging choices can take many forms, including:

  • Biodegradable and compostable materials
  • Recycled or up-cycled materials
  • Reusable or refillable containers
  • Minimizing energy required for production and transportation
  • Ensuring that packaging can be easily recycled or disposed of in a responsible way
  • Creating pathways and products to design out waste and reduce landfill content

There is a plethora of plant-based packaging options in the market, and all serve as viable solutions to phasing out plastic. But, in true #forestproud fashion, we're focusing on bio-based wood packaging to keep a focus on products that help keep forests as forests, store carbon, and meet our good-for-people-and-planet values.

 

Inside the box.

We're talking about old faithful - cardboard. And for good reason!  We stan a good box. Solid, rugged, durable, and full of carbon down to its corrugated folds. Cardboard is the most frequently used packaging material because it is renewable, sustainable, and highly recyclable. Thanks to avid and dedicated recyclers like you, more paper by weight is recovered from municipal solid waste streams for recycling than plastic, glass, steel and aluminum combined. We’re not going to explore the process of recycling in this blog (but let us know if you’re interested and we’ll write it up).

For a true #forestproud unboxing experience, we want to look at ways that we can innovate and use wood-based bio-products inside the packing box.

We’ve all been there. You’re opening a new box, and inside, there’s plastic air cushions or, worse, those awful Styrofoam peanuts.

Now imagine opening that box and seeing nature.

Sylvacurls manufacturers wood curls with poplar, a native tree species. Light in color with a neutral odor, the wood holds the curls nicely and condensed to create secure packaging, even for fragile items. Photo by Erica Houskeeper.

“While much of the world turned to cheap, petroleum-based packaging materials like Styrofoam peanuts [...], Sylvacurl founders Jim and Mary-Ellen Lovinsky turned to nature.” They use poplar, also called aspen, a fast-growing native species. Locally sourced in Vermont, poplar is perfect for manufacturing wood curls, being light in color with a neutral odor that won’t seep into jellies or jams, cheeses, and other artisanal products. Sylvacurl proudly “closes the loop” as a business. “In addition to the curls being biodegradable, the sawdust that they shake off prior to shipment is used for animal bedding on their farm, and later composted. From there, the compost is used to top dress their gardens, completing the cycle.” Customers are encouraged to use the wood curls as fire starter, garden dressing, mulch or compost, pet bedding and more, to close the loop themselves with an enclosed graphic and pamphlet in each order. Peak #forestproud.

Now we’re pawing through these lovely wood curls, digging out our new purchases. Instead of pulling out plastic bottles and bags – depending on your interests – here’s some stuff you could have bought:

Beer.

Yep, WestRock's CanCollar is a paper-based alternative to plastic rings used to hold multi-packs of cans. This sustainable solution, adopted by major craft brewers, reduces plastic waste and is fully recyclable. CanCollar not only provides an eco-friendly option for beverage packaging but also supports the industry's efforts to reduce plastic pollution. With new beer rings made of cardboard, you have your beer and recycle it all. So go ahead, crack a beer, save the ducks, support wildlife habitat.

Mentos and more.

Graphic Packaging's Boardio paper-based bottle, developed in collaboration with Perfetti Van Melle for Mentos gum, is a game-changer and a 2023 American Forest & Paper Association Sustainability Award-winner. This innovative solution provides a renewable and recyclable alternative to traditional plastic bottles. Made entirely from paper, Boardio reduces plastic use and can be recycled curbside, offering a sustainable and convenient option for consumers. Designed for a range of applications including dry mixes, coffee, snacks, confectionery, nutrition powders, and more, Boardio is an alternative to rigid plastic, glass and metal containers.

Clothing.

Another American Forest & Paper Association's 2023 Sustainability Award winners, Seaman Paper’s innovative Vela™ bags, “are a paper alternative to replace single-use plastic poly bags. Vela™ bags are transparent paper transport bags that are FSC® certified, weather-resistant, durable enough to withstand supply chain demands, and certified recyclable. Seaman Paper is currently partnering with hundreds of environmentally conscious brands – across 36 countries – in progressing their sustainability goals of reducing single-use plastics through their global supply chains. [Side note: we’re working on a blog about wood-based clothing and decarbonizing the fast fashion supply chain, starting with bags and ending with dresses and dyes.]

Pet food.

Ahlstrom's PawPrint Sustainable Pet Food Packaging is making waves in the pet food industry. Another AF&PA Sustainability Award-winner, this innovative packaging solution is non-PFAS, grease-resistant, and fully recyclable, addressing the need for sustainable options in a market traditionally dominated by plastic. PawPrint packaging not only reduces environmental impact but also maintains the functionality required for pet food storage, ensuring that sustainability does not compromise quality. Pet food brands are getting on board, making the shift from plastic to paper.

Makeup, technology, art, and more.

Manufacturers and makers of fragile items that are traditionally shipped in closely fitting Styrofoam cutouts can now pilot bio-based foam. Stora Enso, a Stockholm, Sweden-based company, is piloting their newest packaging offerings: Fibrease and Papira. These bio-based foams come from certified wood, are fully recyclable, and can be used for protective and thermal packaging.

In forestry, sustainability isn't just a buzzword; it's a crucial aspect of balancing and maintaining forests and all the great things they do for people and planet.

Forests are intricate ecosystems. Through sustainable forest management practices, foresters and other natural resource professionals ensure forests continue to delicately balance the needs of society for biodiversity, carbon storage, timber production, clean air, clean water, and quality of life essentials.

As we embrace the shift towards bio-based, renewable, and sustainable products and transition away from fossil fuels and plastics, it’s more important than ever to manage our forests to meet the needs of today and of tomorrow. By implementing sustainable forestry practices, we're not only protecting wildlife habitats, delivering essential products, and needed innovations but also mitigating the impacts of climate change. Managing forests responsibly reduces our carbon footprint, supports a thriving bio-based economy, and ensures a stable supply of wood-based products.

We hope you are inspired to choose sustainable packaging and take a deep dive into the world of packaging innovations, with all these new links to guide you. Your consumer choices directly impact the products available to support our future consumer choices, our forests, and our ability to deliver, sustain, and scale forest-climate solutions like the innovations featured here.

As a bonus, the sustainable packaging world is continually innovating to come up with cool new ways to design waste and fossil fuels out of the supply chain and create more efficient packaging strategies. Check out the Pack It! The Packaging Recycling Design Challenge, a two-episode series hosted by Netflix’s “Nailed It!” winner, social influencer and art teacher, Cassie Stephens.

Happy packing. Thanks for reading this far. We appreciate you making choices that affect people and planet, today and tomorrow. We all have a part to play in keeping forests as forests - and it starts with you. So keep the 5Rs of #forestproud in mind, today and every day.

 

Natural Climate Solutions
Reconnecting People and Forests
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Innovation, Mass Timber, Sustainability

Wood Innovations

This Earth Day, we’re wading into the great Planet Vs. Plastic debate. And we’re #foresproud to throw in behind Planet, just like we do all the other days of the year.

Read this next
Reconnecting People and Forests
Reimagining Our Cities
Rethinking Our Carbon Future
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Urban Forests

Scaling Urban and Community Wood in Memphis

From Trash to Treasure

© Photo by #forestproud

In November 2023, Memphis Urban Wood Academy participants focused on what makes urban and community wood uniquely scalable in Tennessee. The event took place at the heart of the Memphis Botanical Gardens and was full of dedicated practitioners working on solutions to divert urban and community wood from the waste stream into circular, regional bio-economies.

 What to Do with Woody Waste

Regional variation in geography, tree species, natural disasters, and the wildland-urban interfaces add complexity to forest management across the nation; in urban and community settings, the social, cultural, and legal dynamics add additional complexity to the question of what to do with wood waste. Finding viable solutions to this problem was at the heart of the November 2023 meeting of the Memphis Urban Wood Academy.

Charlie Becker, USDA Forest Service (Forest Service), discussed the importance of municipal tree inventories and canopy assessments to determine how much wood will be generated in the future in the face of aging, diseased, and damaged trees and trends in storm damage and debris distribution. Ashley Kite-Rowland, Tennessee’s urban and community forestry coordinator, emphasized the need to develop urban wood management plans in partnership with solid waste departments and emergency response strike teams as well as local arborists and businesses.

Making Urban and Community Wood Profitable

Local impact and collaboration are at the core of urban and community wood’s potential. Participants toured the pilot site in the Klondike neighborhood where the Memphis Urban Wood Project, an initiative aimed at building a zero-waste urban tree site, is ramping up. This pilot site plans to accept fallen wood from local arborists and in the future, it may also accept storm debris as part of an emergency management post-disaster response. Local staff, hired at far above the annual median neighborhood income of $15,000, will help sort and process the wood and woody debris into the most viable products for resale. At a minimum, this includes lumber, wood slabs, and compost production. This work will be done on-site as a regional processing hub with a zero-waste goal and revenue generating model.

The Memphis Urban Wood Project is a combined effort of the Urban Wood Economy, Inc., and The Works, Inc. Roshun Austin, CEO and President of The Works, Inc., emphasized the need to build relationships with business owners, companies, entrepreneurs, local nonprofits, government organizations, and community members. Workforce development is a key element of this scaled model. It requires investment in local economies and individuals by offering wrap-around workforce development and training to a workforce that has not historically had an on-ramp to the forestry sector.

"If we're going to rebuild neighborhoods, what better way than to use what's already there?" - Roshun Austin; The Works, Inc.

Stacks of wood drying in the sunset
Stacks of boards drying in the sunset
Close up of urban wood boards

By scaling and piloting different models to connect urban and community wood with viable markets, the wider forestry sector can lead with purpose and commitment to advance climate action and social equity. In the words of Jeff Carroll, the CEO and co-founder of the Urban Wood Economy, Inc., “urban wood is an opportunity, not just a commodity.”

A huge “thank you!” for the leadership and funding support the Forest Service and Cal Fire invested in the last two Urban and Community Wood Academies.  The efforts of Urban Wood Economy, Inc. (organizer) and dozens of wood utilization experts and advocates were central to the Academy experiences and inspirations.

 

Rae Tamblyn is the associate director of #forestproud at the Society of American Foresters. Jen Judd is the director of partnerships and outreach for Urban Wood Economy, Inc. This article was originally written for and appears in the Society of American Foresters Forestry Source, April 2024. 

New to the urban forestry conversation? Check out our series on what the urban forests is, why it matters, why we measure it, and why we are #forestproud to see it grow.

 

Unfamiliar with the urban wood conversation? Check out our series on what urban wood is, why it matters, and what we are doing to turn waste to wealth, trash to treasure.

 

Take a Deep Dive! In December 2022, the CA Urban Wood Academy was held but space was limited. The range of topics and expertise at the Academy was so valuable that CAL FIRE and the USDA Forest Service provided funding to capture the educational highlights. We're pleased to share a full 6.5 hours of FREE high-quality educational content, cut down and packaged into a virtual workshop learning experience via a series of presentations, hosted on SAF ForestEd. This workshop lecture series offers the opportunity to earn 5.5 SAF and ISA continuing education credits. This free virtual workshop is for anyone looking to build or refresh knowledge around urban wood utilization and how the wood product supply chain is key to making significant environmental, social and economic impacts on communities of all sizes. The information presented here ties together urban and community forest management, plans for reducing tree waste, scaling up urban wood utilization and production, creating zero-waste biomass campuses, and connecting to the demand-side of the marketplace.

Reimagining Our Cities
Urban Forests

RECLAIMED | The Urban Wood Project

The Urban Wood Project began as a quest to reclaim wood from abandoned city homes. It very quickly became about so much more.

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Wood Innovations

Shifting from Plastics to Planet

This Earth Day, we’re wading into the great Planet Vs. Plastic debate. And we’re #forestproud to throw in behind Planet, just like we do all the other days of the year.

Plastics aren’t great for the planet. But when you look at the things we use every day, plastics and petroleum-based products are an essential part of our lives. From electronics, to packaging, to the windows and walls of our buildings, to our energy grid, fossil fuels and derivatives are everywhere, all the time. Wouldn’t it be great if we could replace these unsustainable products with renewable, recyclable, biodegradable, carbon-storing options that are good for the planet – and still functional for your everyday needs?

We’re working on it as a society: consumers are more likely to BYOB(ags) to the stores or ask for paper, plastic straws are on their way down, and concerns over single-use plastics are up. However, knowing what to ask for *instead* of plastics is half the battle. We’re not going to spend a lot of time talking up paper plates, paper cups, compostable packaging and cutlery, bio-based packaging, pine needle “plastic” bags, and other standbys for helping consumers move away from single-use plastics (but we will give them the shout-out they deserve!) (Actually, we may do a full blog on cool packaging innovations... * let us know if you’re interested!)

What we want to do now is look at the harder stuff – the stuff that is either so big, so ubiquitous, or so small it feels impossible to change. We’re talking about innovating the way we build buildings, the way we power our homes, and make our electronic goods. This deep dive starts with windows, goes to the walls, to concrete, to electronics, and ends with electricity itself (not a plastic, we know, but humor us here. Wood can help solve our energy needs just as it can help us innovate and design plastic out of all the things that energy powers.)

Let's start with the windows...

Photo credit: US Forest Service

We're #forestproud to see transparent wood emerging as one of the most promising materials of the future. Our friends at the USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory wondered if looking through trees was the view to a greener future. “Trees replacing windows—not just the frames, but the actual clear pane glass—is not a work of science fiction. It’s happening now.”

Transparent wood is created when wood from the fast-growing, low-density balsa tree is treated to a room temperature, oxidizing bath that bleaches it of nearly all visibility. The wood is then penetrated with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), creating a product that is virtually transparent.

The natural cellulose in its wood structure and energy-absorbing polymer filler in transparent wood means that it is far more durable and lighter than glass. It can withstand much stronger impacts than glass and, unlike glass, it bends or splinters instead of shattering.

Switching to transparent wood could prove to be cost efficient as well. It is approximately five times more thermally efficient than glass, cutting energy costs. It is made from a sustainable, renewable resource with low carbon emissions. It’s also compatible with existing industrial processing equipment, making the transition into manufacturing an easy prospect.

With all these potential benefits for consumers, manufacturing and the environment, the case for transparent wood couldn’t be…clearer.

To the walls…

If you’ve followed us for long, you know we love us some mass timber and we talk about it all the time. But what is it? Mass Timber is a catch-all term for a family of engineered wood components. As our friends over at Think Wood and Naturally Wood lay out, mass timber products are made from layers of wood, “multiple solid wood panels nailed or glued together, which provide exceptional strength and stability,” as well as offering "a structurally efficient yet low-carbon alternative to steel or concrete.” This technology is both centuries old and brand new, as the building and forest sector are constantly innovating to build taller, stronger, and faster as we meet housing demands and work to shift our buildings from a climate problem to a climate solution. Check out this cool animation below from our friends at the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO) featuring some of the different mass timber product types:

Mass Timber is an essential product in our forest climate-solution toolbox that is helping us build better buildings, faster, and more sustainably. Mass timber - combined with light-frame construction - can deliver on value, longevity, speed of construction and flexibility. Mass timber helps us build faster and more efficiently, keeps carbon locked away, and allows us to provide homes that are good for people and planet.

From the walls to the concrete…  

At a cellular level - one millionth the size of the head of a pin - are the microscopic building blocks of a tree. Cellulose is a basic building block of plant cells and is key to keeping plants and trees upright. (Think: those stringy bits in celery, but very, very small.) A single rod-like cellulose nanocrystal is the tiniest building block of wood. Each crystal is one hundred million times smaller than the head of a pin and can only be seen through a powerful scanning electron microscope. Nanocellulose – cellulose in its smallest microscopic form – has immense and untapped potential to create win-win solutions for people and planet. 

Photo Credit: US Forest Service, US Endowment, #forestproud

These tiny fibers are as strong as steel, but only one-fifth the weight. Because of their structures, nanocellulose materials also have a high rate of biocompatibility - meaning they can easily be added to, or combined with, other materials. In other words, we can take the climate powers of trees and add them to non-tree materials, like concrete and steel to make them stronger and lighter.

Currently, “if concrete were a country, it would be the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases on Earth, behind only China and the United States.” The USDA Forest Service State, Private & Tribal Forestry Cooperative Forestry Wood Innovations program, Oregon State University, Siskiyou County, California, and the US Endowment teamed up to test a nanocellulose additive to concrete aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Yreka Bridge shows how adding Cellulosic Nanocrystals to a concrete mix can reduce the amount of cement in a standard concrete mix. This reduction in cement saves a considerable amount of CO2 emissions, makes concrete lighter and more durable - and it also stores carbon in the concrete. 

Wood-infused concrete can help make our buildings, homes, and our built environment greener. By adding nanocellulose to concrete, it’s been proven possible to increase its strength and help shift an essential building material like concrete from being a carbon problem to a being a carbon solution.

And from concrete to electronics.  

 Nanocellulose – thanks to its high biocompatibility rate that we talked about – can be added to a lot more than concrete. Enter electronics and electronic parts. We rely on electronic parts pretty much in every moment of our lives. And you guessed it, we can add wood and make these things greener, less emissions-heavy, and help turn even the tiniest bit into a carbon-storing component.  

Photo credit: US Forest Service

“UW–Madison engineers and collaborators constructed a functional microwave amplifier circuit — a common piece of electronics used in wireless communications — on a flexible substrate made of wood fiber. Wood-based nanomaterials can be used to make electronic components like this one pictured, computer chips, car panels, replacement tendons, car tires, and coatings that keep food fresh longer.”

Electronics can grow on trees thanks to nanocellulose paper semiconductors. Osaka University researchers, in collaboration with The University of Tokyo, Kyushu University, and Okayama University, have developed a nanocellulose paper semiconductor that provides both nano−micro−macro trans-scale designability of the 3D structures and wide tunability of the electrical properties”. This innovation has been tested and modeled and “examples of successful applications showed nanopaper semiconductor sensors incorporated into wearable devices to detect exhaled moisture breaking through facemasks and moisture on the skin. The nanopaper semiconductor was also used as an electrode in a glucose biofuel cell and the energy generated lit a small bulb.” Curious to dig into more ways that wood is adding versatility and expanding the potential in the world of electronics? Here’s a great place to start reading. (Bonus: this article talks more about wooden satellites – yes, you read that right.)

And (last but not least) electronics to electricity itself. 

Bioenergy has entered the building. Literally. We know it’s not plastic, but it sure is fossil fuels heavy. So humor us on this. While we've long used wood for fuel, this innovative iteration of domestic bioenergy sourced from woody byproducts scales up to meet our modern energy demands. Domestic wood bioenergy and biofuels are reshaping our energy landscape, deriving energy from sustainable wood byproducts and reducing our carbon footprint. From wood chips to pellets, these byproducts fuel biomass boiler systems, offering cleaner alternatives to fossil fuels. We're effectively turning waste into watts, powering our homes and cities with renewable energy. Check out the video below from the Wood Innovations Program within Forest Service State, Private & Tribal Forestry Cooperative Forestry on how a Vermont school is using domestic wood energy to power its energy needs. In addition to using domestic wood energy, areas of the country like Vermont and the Northern Forest are also using local wood pellets and chips in automated systems to heat homes, schools, and businesses that in turn support sustainable forestry practices. Transitioning to wood from heating with oil or propane can reduce carbon footprints by 50% and make efficient use of wood waste and this renewable resource. This is just one example of the many ways that organizations and communities in Vermont and the rest of the USA are using domestic wood energy to reduce their carbon footprint and their waste footprint at the same time. 

Woody byproducts are the backbone of this renewable bioenergy, supporting local economies, reducing fossil fuel dependency, and maintaining forests in a sustainable cycle. It's a win-win-win. This renewable source not only powers our homes and industries but also fosters healthier forests. Bioenergy is a game-changer, steering us towards a greener, renewable, and sustainable energy future.  

As we embrace the shift towards biobased, renewable, sustainable products and transition away from fossil fuels and plastics, it’s more important than ever to manage our forests to meet the needs of today and of tomorrow.

Forests are intricate ecosystems. Through sustainable forest management practices, foresters and other natural resource professionals ensure forests continue to delicately balance the needs of society for biodiversity, carbon storage, timber production, clean air, clean water, and quality of life essentials.

In forestry, sustainability isn't just a buzzword; it's a crucial aspect of balancing and maintaining forests and all the great things they do for people and planet. By implementing sustainable forestry practices, we're not only protecting wildlife habitats, delivering essential products, and needed innovations but also mitigating the impacts of climate change. Managing forests responsibly reduces our carbon footprint, supports a thriving bio-based economy, and ensures a stable supply of wood-based products.

We hope you read all the links you opened in new tabs, take a deep dive into the world of wood innovations, and are newly inspired to choose wood. This Earth Day and every day, consumer choices and forest management actions directly impact the Planet vs Plastics debate facing our future consumer choices, our forests, and our ability to deliver, sustain, and scale forest-climate solutions like the innovations featured here.

 

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Sustaining Biodiversity in the Face of Climate Change

Forest Management is Key

Forests, crucial spaces for biodiversity and climate regulation, are facing increasing threats from climate change.

Forest management is key to sustaining biodiversity in the face of climate change.

Forests provide habitat for thousands of species, regulate climate, purify air and water, and support the livelihoods – and lives – of millions of people. As one of the planet’s most significant carbon sinks, forests play a pivotal role in regulating our climate by absorbing and storing carbon dioxide (CO2), so ensuring forests remain resilient and healthy is an essential part of climate change mitigation strategies.

With changing climate conditions leading to extreme weather events, altered precipitation patterns, and rising temperatures, and with human activities like land conversion and urbanization adding additional pressures, forests, and the diverse life they support, are under increasing strain.

Forest management has a critical role to play to help us ensure resilient habitats for wildlife and thriving natural climate solutions for today and tomorrow. Forestry encompasses the science, art, and practice of managing forests sustainably for various purposes, including timber production, wildlife habitat preservation, recreation, and ecosystem services. Effective forest management involves a holistic approach that considers ecological, economic, and social factors.

Climate change poses unprecedented challenges to forests. Rising temperatures, droughts, flooding, fires, the spread of pests and diseases, and extreme weather events are threatening the health and resilience of forest ecosystems. These changes are exacerbating the biodiversity crisis, with many species becoming more and more vulnerable to extinction. In the face of these threats, proactive forest management is more crucial than ever.

23 - Forest Challenges - Twitter Feed v1_ContentLibrary

Here's why:

By preserving and restoring the wide range of habitats inherent in different forests, forest management plays a vital role in conserving biodiversity. Strategic land-use planning, protected area management, and habitat restoration initiatives can help safeguard the rich diversity of plant and animal species that depend on forests for survival. Just as not all forests are the same, not all species need the same habitat, so careful, targeted, and varied forest management is needed to ensure biodiversity and the persistence of vulnerable habitats and species.

Forests provide a wide range of ecosystem services essential for human well-being, including filtering air and water, regulating climate by storing carbon, providing pollinator habitat, and enhancing our quality of life. Sustainable forest management ensures that these services are maintained for future generations. Forests are not only valuable for their ecological functions but also for the livelihoods and cultural heritage practices of communities. Responsible forest management can support sustainable forestry practices, create employment opportunities, and generate income while conserving natural resources for future generations.

Finally, well-managed forests are more resilient to the impacts of climate change, which helps not only the overall health of the forest and planet, but also the millions of things that live in them. Practices such as selective logging, prescribed burning, and reforestation can help maintain forest health and create essential habitat. This management also reduces the risk of wildfires and enhances carbon sequestration, mitigating climate change effects and creating essential spaces for biodiversity. Forest management strategies can contribute to both adaptation to and mitigation of climate change. By enhancing forest resilience and carbon storage capacity, well-managed forests can help communities adapt to changing environmental conditions while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

3_Woodcock_And_Forest_Management_Twitter_v1_Light_ContentLibrary

Healthy, adaptive, and resilient forests are essential to provide habitat for wildlife, help us address the climate challenge, and sustain human well-being. However, the combined threats of climate change and the biodiversity crisis are putting immense pressure on these vital ecosystems. By embracing sustainable forest management practices, we can help protect and restore forests, ensuring resilient habitats for wildlife and building climate resilience for future generations.  

 We’re #forestproud to celebrate the importance of forests in our fight against climate change and support forest management practices that keep forests as forests, for today and for tomorrow.  

 You can help too: donate and help us continue our work to protect, promote, and enhance climate-resilient forests. Tell your friends what makes you #forestproud to support natural climate solutions. 

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Bradford Bounty: a win-win for homeowners and forest lovers.

A terrible no-good very bad very invasive tree.

We love trees here at #forestproud – but we don’t love ALL trees. In fact, the Bradford pear is a terrible, no-good, very bad, very invasive tree.

Invasive Species Awareness Week is perfect timing to call out these trees for the nasty invasives they are, as they are starting to bloom all across the US. Sure, the Bradford Pear has pretty blossoms, but it also “smells of rotten fish, breaks easily during storms, and outcompetes native trees.” As you drive around your neighbor or casually scan the highway banks as you whizz by, you’ll undoubtedly start to notice all the frothy white trees blooming alongside the roads. These are Bradford Pears and their relative, the Callery Pear. These trees are damaging to our native ecosystems and need to be removed and replaced.

Invasive species are one of the biggest threats facing forests across the US in both urban and rural settings, costing billions of dollars each year in economic and environmental damages. The Society of American Foresters and the forest sector as a whole are committed to science-based, proactive, and adaptive approaches to the prevention, management, and control of invasive species in forests at scale, including the sustainable restoration of forests impacted by these species.

We all have a part to play in removing invasives and replacing them with native trees that are essential to climate resiliency, healthy biodiversity, and long-term ecosystem health. Forests need all of us to help do our part to combat the spread of invasives and keep our forests – rural and urban – healthy.

Enter the Bradford Bounty programs.

Spearheaded by Clemson, these programs are now spreading across the southeastern US and beyond. Homeowners bring proof that they cut down Bradford Pear/Callery Pear trees and receive a free native tree to replace each invasive they cut down. This helps offset the costs of removal and replanting and encourages people to directly participate in restoring natives to their yards. Urban trees are essential for capturing carbon, cleaning our air, and filtering our water, but we want them to also support native wildlife, provide essential habitat, be a source of beauty, and to smell…nice.

Google “Bradford Bounty” for your closest bounty-hunter and free tree source.

Want to hear more about how terrible Bradford pears are and meet the mastermind of the Bradford Bounty Program? Meet Dr. Dave Coyle: a Society of American Foresters W. D. Hagenstein Communicator Award winner, renowned science communicator, and professor. He sat down with #forestproud friend and Planthropology podcast host Vikram Baliga to talk about "The Worst Trees, Saving Your Ash, and The Shrimp Olympics."

Listen now

Bradford_pear_invasive_Species_Bounty_collage
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Invasive Species: from infestation to inspiration

We spend a lot of time talking about climate change + forests, so we’re naturally talking about invasive species. How can we move from infestation to inspiration?

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Invasive Species: from infestation to inspiration

Managing for forest health and invasive species. Crafting opportunities.

We spend a lot of time talking about climate change and forests, so we’re naturally talking about tree heath, forest pests, diseases, and invasive species regularly. Why? Climate change has made the threat of invasive species worse, with warming temperatures allowing species to move into areas that may have been too cold to survive.

Our #forestproud friends over at Project Learning Tree define an invasive species as “any kind of organism that is not native to an ecosystem and causes harm to the environment, economy and possibly even human health. Typically, the species grow, reproduce quickly, and spread aggressively because their populations are not controlled by natural predators.” As invasive species threaten forest health and resiliency, the changing temperatures also stress trees out, making them vulnerable to infection or infestations (just like how our immune systems are more vulnerable when we’re stressed or burned out!).

Invasive species are one of the biggest threats facing forests across the US in both urban and rural settings, costing billions of dollars each year in economic and environmental damages. The Society of American Foresters and the forest sector as a whole are committed to science-based, proactive, and adaptive approaches to the prevention, management, and control of invasive species in forests at scale, including the sustainable restoration of forests impacted by these species.

While managing for the impact of invasive species in our forests is a huge financial undertaking, we can apply a #forestproud lens and see opportunity and potential to scale solutions - even in the face of massive infestations!

Invasive species like the Emerald Ash Borer have massive landscape implications. Ash trees were once a common site in urban and community centers, planted for their beauty and resiliency. But once the Emerald Ash Borer arrived, that all changed. From infestation, it takes 3-5 years until the infected tree dies. More than 99% of ash trees that have been attacked have been killed (less than 1 in 1,000 survive). That leaves millions of standing dead or dying trees. In urban areas, taking these dead trees out for people’s safety is paramount – but that’s expensive, and creates a massive waste problem in our already-overburdened landfills. Let’s also not forget also that trees store carbon as they grow, so all these dead ash trees mean all those millions of tons of carbon are decaying back into our atmosphere. But there’s an alternative to landfills!

From the ashes, opportunity.

Reclaiming urban ash wood and turning them into works of wooden art transforms these trees into an opportunity to reduce wood waste, create jobs in underserved communities, and store carbon in long-lived wood products, while driving incentives to replant and regrow urban forests. Urban wood reuse can be a complex process to get started, but the upside is worth the work. If you want to learn more, check out #forestproud friends Wood from the Hood, Room & Board, and Taylor Guitars as just three of many urban wood businesses turning trash to treasure.

It’s worth owning that we live in a capitalist society. If we don’t value it, there’s no value in it. Right? Right.

So – as we stated earlier, removing and managing for invasive species is a massive financial undertaking. To offset the costs of management, we have to think creatively and explore the potential to create value. Just as the urban wood movement is reclaiming wood waste from urban areas and turning that into beautiful furniture pieces, interior décor statements, musical instruments and more, we can also build entire buildings from invasive species.

Meet After Architecture founders Katie MacDonald, Assoc. AIA, and Kyle Schumann, who have set their sights on “a byproduct of sustainable forestry and ecological restoration: invasive plants. By developing architectural uses for nonnative species and timber thinnings —specimens that are strategically removed as part of forest management—MacDonald and Schumann believe the building industry can wean off carbon-intensive materials.” We're seeing this successfully play out already.

"In Hawaii, for instance, invasive albizia trees are now sought after as a building material thanks to a recent demonstration from The Albizia Project. Albizia trees were introduced to the Hawaiian Islands in 1917 as a part of reforestation efforts. But the trees soon outcompeted slower-growing native trees and altered the forest’s soil chemistry, further disadvantaging native species. Like Bradford pear trees, albizia are also prone to shedding branches without warning, leading many people to assume that the wood was weak and had little commercial value. Today, demand for albizia wood, once left to rot in the forest or along roadsides, has outstripped supply." Check out this cool article to meet these innovators, explore these projects in more detail, and hear from architects focused on leveraging invasive species as a hot commodity for low-carbon supply chains, from whole trees to mass timber manufacturing.

Approximately 50% of the dry weight of a tree is carbon. Trees sequester carbon from the atmosphere and store it as they grow, making forests important for mitigating climate change. Critically for our planet, carbon can also be stored outside of forests in wood products made from trees that allow us to meet human needs while storing the carbon sequestered by trees in long-lived products. The ability for a building to act as a climate solution is incredibly valuable. Mass timber and lumber locks in and stores carbon in a way many building materials don’t. With the building industry currently responsible for an estimated 20% of global emissions, a renewed focus on and enthusiasm for building with wood is a climate game changer.

As a society, we are increasingly focused on the carbon and sustainability story associated with the buildings we build and the products we buy. Adding invasive species into the building and décor spaces means we can build and decorate our future homes and offices with wood products in a way that keeps carbon locked up and our forests healthier, resilient, and better able to adapt to a changing climate. That’s #forestproud.

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Rethinking Our Carbon Future
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Mass Timber

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As our cities continue to grow, so do the challenges they face. Reimagine the way society lives, works, and plays by moving our cities from climate problems, to climate solutions.

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Urban Wood Utilization

From Trash to Treasure

© Photo by #forestproud

In a given year, an estimated 15 - 30 million tons of urban wood is wasted across the country, ending up in landfills, releasing carbon back into the atmosphere as the wood rots slowly away.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

At its core, urban and community wood utilization diverts wood from waste streams and landfills, creating value, driving new markets, generating employment opportunities, and storing carbon in wood destined for landfills. The wood comes from two main streams: 1) fresh cut and recovered from trees coming down in urban and community areas and 2) wood salvaged from building deconstruction.

Let's talk about that first stream of wood waste.

Planting and maintaining trees is an essential part of growing a climate-resilient city. Trees shade our streets and homes, reducing our energy costs and providing shade and cool spots in our increasingly hot urban spaces; they filter our air, clean our water, and provide beauty and a renewed sense of connection to nature. As they grow, trees continually store carbon, locking it away from the atmosphere.

 

No matter how you look at it, urban forests are collectively a living climate solution to today’s climate crisis.

But, as we plant more trees and grow our urban and community forests to meet today’s needs, there will inevitably come tomorrow’s question: What will we do with the trees when they come down? And they will come down, in whole or in part, from natural disasters, pests and disease, drought, new construction, homeowner maintenance, utility line needs, or old age.

Urban wood utilization began with a goal to explore new uses for urban wood waste but is quickly growing into a holistic means to drive a circular, bio-based urban economy that addresses complex ecological, economic, and social challenges across the country.

 

Recovering and reclaiming wood waste helps us build and grow local wood economies, create jobs, store carbon, and position cities to achieve sustainability and climate resiliency goals. Each new product and business built around urban wood creates a story and product that connects trees in our communities to homes and people in a tangible way. It drives community and employment revitalization and reduces wood waste, all while reimagining our cities—and our urban wood streams—as opportunities for innovation and climate solutions.

The urban wood movement is here to stay, and we’re #forestproud to see it grow.

__

 

New to the urban forestry conversation? Check out our series on what the urban forests is, why it matters, why we measure it, and why we are #forestproud to see it grow.

 

Take a Deep Dive! In December 2022, the CA Urban Wood Academy was held but space was limited. The range of topics and expertise at the Academy was so valuable that CAL FIRE and the USDA Forest Service provided funding to capture the educational highlights. We're pleased to share a full 6.5 hours of FREE high-quality educational content, cut down and packaged into a virtual workshop learning experience via a series of presentations, hosted on SAF ForestEd. This workshop lecture series offers the opportunity to earn 5.5 SAF and ISA continuing education credits. This free virtual workshop is for anyone looking to build or refresh knowledge around urban wood utilization and how the wood product supply chain is key to making significant environmental, social and economic impacts on communities of all sizes. The information presented here ties together urban and community forest management, plans for reducing tree waste, scaling up urban wood utilization and production, creating zero-waste biomass campuses, and connecting to the demand-side of the marketplace.

Virtual Workshop Access Link
Reimagining Our Cities
Urban Forests

RECLAIMED | The Urban Wood Project

The Urban Wood Project began as a quest to reclaim wood from abandoned city homes. It very quickly became about so much more.

Watch this next
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Urban Wood.

Recover. Reuse. Regrow.

© Photo by #forestproud

Planting and maintaining trees is an essential part of growing a climate-resilient city. But, as we plant more trees and grow the tree canopy in our communities to meet today’s needs , there will inevitably come tomorrow’s question: What will we do with the trees when they come down?

And they will come down, in whole or in part, from natural disasters, pests and disease, drought, new construction, homeowner maintenance, utility line needs, or old age.

Trees store carbon as they grow. That carbon is locked away  in its branches, limbs, trunk, and roots.

 

Here is the challenge: When trees come down in a community, they rarely get a second life. In a given year, an estimated 15 - 30 million tons of urban and community wood is wasted across the country, ending up in landfills, releasing carbon back into the atmosphere as the wood rots slowly away. 

 

 

At its core, urban wood utilization involves diverting wood from waste streams and creating a second life for urban trees. Each new product and business built around urban wood reduces wood waste, drives new markets, generates local employment opportunities, keeps carbon stored longer, and creates an economy that connects forests to communities in a tangible way.  Urban wood utilization offers immense potential to reimagine our cities—and our urban wood streams—as opportunities to develop innovative products and support climate solutions.

The urban wood movement is here to stay, and we’re #forestproud to see it grow.

 

New to the urban forestry conversation? Check out our series on what the urban forests is, why it matters, why we measure it, and why we are #forestproud to see it grow.

 

Take a Deep Dive! In December 2022, the CA Urban Wood Academy was held but space was limited. The range of topics and expertise at the Academy was so valuable that CAL FIRE and the USDA Forest Service provided funding to capture the educational highlights. We're pleased to share a full 6.5 hours of FREE high-quality educational content, cut down and packaged into a virtual workshop learning experience via a series of presentations, hosted on SAF ForestEd. This workshop lecture series offers the opportunity to earn 5.5 SAF and ISA continuing education credits. This free virtual workshop is for anyone looking to build or refresh knowledge around urban wood utilization and how the wood product supply chain is key to making significant environmental, social and economic impacts on communities of all sizes. The information presented here ties together urban and community forest management, plans for reducing tree waste, scaling up urban wood utilization and production, creating zero-waste biomass campuses, and connecting to the demand-side of the marketplace.

Virtual Workshop Access Link
Reconnecting People and Forests
Reimagining Our Cities
Rethinking Our Carbon Future
Carbon + Climate Change, Forest Management, Forest Products, Urban Forests

Urban Wood Utilization

Explore what actually goes into managing urban trees and forests and how communities are balancing economic, environmental, and climate goals.

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