LANDSCAPING SERVICES
HELP TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE – USE MORE WOOD
preservative treated wood had the same level of protection and could be used anywhere which is not the case . British Standards require that the treatment process is tailored to the end use . Wood for indoor applications needs lower levels of protection than wood products used out of doors . ‘ Use a treated internal floor joist out of doors and the risk of premature failure is high ’ says Gordon Ewbank who confirms that the research was a huge wake-up call for the wood treating industry and has resulted in the TTF , WPA and other timber trade bodies working together improve buyer knowledge about how to specify and use treated wood correctly .
The climate change conference , COP 26 , highlighted construction activity as major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions ; it also highlighted that using more sustainable materials like wood could reduce emissions significantly . The environmental performance of construction products is in the spotlight like never before . In this respect , the environmental benefits of wood are compelling . By any measure of sustainability wood scores highly ; it ’ s a renewable material that locks up the carbon absorbed by growing trees .
Using more wood however is not as simple as it may seem . That ’ s because the main softwood species used for building and landscaping lack the durability to deliver the performance required for some applications . The good news is that the durability of wood products can be enhanced using a factory controlled preservative treatment or wood modification process to protect against fungal decay and insects during its service life .
“ Realising the full potential of wood as a sustainable , environmentally beneficial material goes hand in glove with realising the benefits of wood protection technology ” says Gordon Ewbank , director of the Wood Protection Association ( WPA ).
Fit for purpose Factory pretreated softwoods from managed forests are particularly suited to landscaping and outdoor structural applications . Like any other material though , treated wood must be correctly specified and installed to ensure its performance . Market research by the WPA in collaboration with the Timber Trade Federation ( TTF ) has highlighted considerable misperceptions about treated wood products . For example , the research highlighted a widespread belief that all
Follow the ground rules Nowhere is the fitness for purpose of treated wood more important than for landscaping applications in direct contact with the ground - categorised as Use Class 4 applications in British Standards . “ We know from a long-term field trial of timber fenceposts being carried out by BRE that treated wood can be trusted in outdoor applications ’ says Gordon Ewbank who confirms that the WPA has established a number of ground rules to help ensure that treated wood supplied for ground contact applications is fit for purpose . First and foremost , make sure the supplier knows the timber is for a Use Class 4 application ; secondly make sure the wood is treated by a process certificated under an independent quality scheme such as the WPA BenchmarkTM . And finally , remember that high performance materials do cost more .
Designers and buyers can find lot more information and help on the WPA website www . thewpa . org . uk
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