Recently, with housing minister Yvette Cooper, I participated in a Home Builders Federation (HBF) summit. The subject was how we are going to hit the target of making all new homes carbon neutral by 2016.
One conclusion from the debate was that current house design would have to be radically altered – existing approaches would simply not achieve the target. It struck me that the company that got there first was going to have a huge competitive advantage.
Last week the CBI announced that a group of senior executives would meet to address the business response to climate change. Again the media attention this gained not only spoke of the costs of climate change, but the business opportunities too.
In our industry we often hear that the cost of sustainable timber is not recovered in the selling price. In a sense we have been ahead of the game, with supply of certified timber outstripping demand. But that will change. Customers are getting serious about delivering greener buildings and products.
With the Stern Review accepted as one of the most important recent pieces of climate change work, and given the focus it puts on deforestation as a contributor to carbon emissions (18%), there is no avoiding the public policy and commercial scrutiny we will face.
Our customers are giving us new opportunities; they are waiting at our front door. Who is going to let them in? Companies that do will flourish.
If we are to secure the future of the wood industry, there is no conceivable argument for not pushing for more sustainable timber and backing schemes such as the TTF‘s Responsible Purchasing Policy.
The TTF and the other wood industry bodies are here to help that happen. You should belong to at least one. You will have read that the TTF has launched a new membership drive. If you are reading this and are not already a member, I challenge you to give me a ring and persuade me why you shouldn’t be. Your representative bodies are shaping the agenda that shapes your future through our engagement with government and others like the HBF and CBI. Can you afford not to join?
