USDA playing up benefits of wood
|
|
March 18, 2014 |
At a meeting hosted by the White House Rural
Council today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack
announced a new partnership to train architects,
engineers and builders about the benefits of
advanced wood building materials, and plans for
a forthcoming prize competition to design and
build high-rise wood demonstration projects.
Only time will tell if it's a step in the right
direction toward reopening the Northwest's
forests to sustainable harvest and get our
loggers back to doing what they love.
Innovative use of wood products is already
beginning to change the face of construction
across the country, and USDA is undertaking
efforts to support these advancements. These
efforts also support President Obama's Climate
Action Plan goal of preserving the role of
forests in mitigating climate change.
Wood may be one of the world's oldest building
materials, but it is now also one of the most
advanced, said Vilsack. Building stronger
markets for innovative new wood products
supports sustainable forestry, helps buffer
reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and puts rural
America at the forefront of an emerging
industry. Presently, the market for wood and
other related forest products supports more than
one million direct jobs, many in rural America.
As these markets expand, so will the economic
opportunities.
The new training program Secretary Vilsack
announced today will include a $1 million
investment from the Forest Service and will be
done in partnership with WoodWorks, a non
-profit organization that provides technical
support, education, and resources related to the
design of modern wood buildings for architects,
engineers, and developers.
The Secretary also announced plans to launch a
new prize competition, expected to begin later
this year, for developers, institutions,
organizations and design teams competing to
demonstrate the architectural and commercial
viability of using sustainable wood products in
high-rise construction. The Department is
planning to invest up to $1 million to launch
the competition. One non-profit partner, the
Binational Softwood Lumber Council, has
committed an additional $1 million for the
competition. The competition will help spur
increased sustainability in construction and
will give priority to applicants that source
materials from rural domestic manufacturers and
domestic, sustainably-managed forests.
Emerging engineered wood technologies can be
used in industrial building projects such as
tall buildings and skyscrapers, as well as other
projects. By some industry estimates, a 3-5
story building made from emerging wood
technologies has the same emissions control as
taking up to 550 cars of the road for one year.
Wood-based designs have also been demonstrated
to improve energy efficiency, thereby reducing
energy consumption for heating and cooling.
Today's announcements were made as part of a the
Building With Wood: Jobs and the Environment
workshop hosted by the White House Rural
Council, which included architects, builders,
designers, wood manufactures, foresters, state
officials, university leaders and
representatives from the USDA, General Services
Administration, Department of the Interior,
Federal Emergency Management Agency and
Department of Defense. They also are part of
USDA's overall strategy to promote the use of
wood as a green building material. USDA's Forest
Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin has
invested over $2 million in research and
technical support for emerging wood
technologies. The Forest Products Laboratory has
created additional opportunities for emerging
wood technologies to be used in housing
developments and other green building
demonstration projects.
When President Obama signed the 2014 Farm Bill
in February he directed his Administration,
working through the White House Rural Council,
to lead a new Made in Rural America export and
investment initiative. This initiative is
charged with bringing together federal resources
to help rural businesses and leaders take
advantage of new investment opportunities and
access new customers and markets both at home
and abroad. White House Rural Council leadership
on advanced wood products is an example of how
the Administration is moving forward on dual
goals of domestic production and sustainability. |
|
Questions or comments about this
article?
Click here to e-mail! |
|
|
|
|
