It is with growing frustration that I hear negative coverage of the wood preservation sector in some areas of the media. It is all too easy to take the many benefits which such preservation brings the timber industry for granted. For example, without it we could not use our main home-grown forest resource, Sitka spruce, externally.
The wood preserving industry will, of course, continue to promote copper organic preservatives as fit for purpose, when used correctly, as they have long proven to be around the world. However, the ‘chemistry set’ of biocides that we are now allowed to play with is increasingly restricted by European legislation and, in particular, the Biocidal Products Directive.
CCA has gone, of course, and our old friend creosote is now an endangered species. So, we have to use what we have at our disposal and use it well. Innovative product development of new chemistries and effective quality control at treatment plants has to be the way forward.
It is good to see other technologies, such as heat treatment of timber, developing alongside traditional preservation, sometimes as an alternative. But in the pursuit of “greener” treatments, do we risk assessing materials on a single issue basis? Where is the perceived greener option if a “chemical-free” material uses significant extra energy in the production process instead?
It is also encouraging to see new collaborations developing between organisations that you wouldn’t normally think would have much synergy – for example, like that recently between The American Hardwood Export Council and Osmose, which is looking at exterior protection systems for taking tulipwood into new, added value markets.
Within the building envelope, wood preservation can sometimes be a casualty of economic downturn, deemed to be optional, despite the low cost. But, with the threat of global warming only likely to increase the spread of the house longhorn beetle and other wood-destroying insects, I think we ignore the peace of mind provided by preservation at our peril. In such competitive times, there is a very significant risk in eliminating any factors which may lead to reduced confidence in wood as today’s premium constructional material.
