Southern pine exporters are asking why it is illegal to export CCA-treated wood products for residential use, but legal to export the chemical to countries that compete with US manufacturers, according to the newsletter Random Lengths International.
The exporters have expressed concerns that this situation could create further overseas competition in treated southern pine markets in the Caribbean.
US treaters have been told to stop treating residential products with CCA from January 1, 2004. The ban applies to items such as decking, fencing, play structure components and most dimension lumber. It does not apply to large timbers of items used in saltwater or industrial applications.
Random Lengths says the chemical industry is offering alternative preservatives to treat residential products. However, these cost more which in turn makes the treated lumber more expensive. This, it says, would make southern pine less competitive in the Caribbean against CCA-treated wood from other countries.
