Timber
The timber industry is awash with environmentally friendly marketing. Timber is generally seen as a sustainable and renewable product.  Most timber suppliers will tell you that their timber comes from a sustainably managed forest.  If you question the sustainability, a timber supplier will usually tell you that the timber comes from a sustainably managed plantation.  If you question that, most suppliers will tell you about how their timber adheres to AFS standards.
Is timber as sustainable as we are told? Trees grow, so technically they could be regarded renewable and sustainable.  The fact that a tree may be hundreds of years old and come from a forest of high conservation value or even an old growth forest doesn't seem to come into the picture.  Allot of timber used for the building industry is hardwood.  Hardwood plantations exist, but generally they are used for wood chipping and pulp which goes on to produce paper, tissues, toilet paper, etc.  For a hardwood to be a good enough quality for building and most especially furniture manufacture, the trees need to be around 75 years old. Most forestry in Australia is clear felled and kills many species of animal and bird life, creates soil erosion and damage to waterways. If you intend to purchase plantation timber, find out where the plantation is and how its managed.
How sustainable are plantations? There is debate about the sustainability of many of Australia's plantations because of where they are sited.  Many old growth forests have been clear felled to make way for plantations.  If a plantation is grown adjacent to native forest, the species of plantation tree is most likely to be a weed and infest the surrounding forest, disrupting its ecology. This is particularly true for pine plantations.  Another issue is the use of herbicides and pesticides used to ensure a successful timber crop and how the use of these chemicals affects animals, birds and waterways.  The most sustainable type of plantation is that grown on agricultural land away from native forests. The term 'sustainable management aims to maintain timber production from a forest or plantation at a uniform rate over time, without real consideration of what the land can sustain or to biodiversity.
The standards and guides that Australian forestry generally work to, the AFS, is not regulated or enforced.  So how do we know what is really taking place? Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification is a standard that is enforced and is actually a sign of  sustainably managed and harvested timber.  The FSC is a non-profit membership based organisation that aims at finding an environmentally friendly approach to forestry.  All members are audited to ensure procedures are followed.  Any timber that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council carries its stamp.  You can get certified hardwoods and softwoods.
Other sustainable timbers include recycled timber and timber that is harvested from fallen or felled trees from agricultural land and timber that is reclaimed from clear felled land that has been stacked ready for burning.  There are a number of suppliers of both recycled and reclaimed timber throughout Australia.  Another option is to use wood substitutes, made from recycled materials like Modwood (made fomr saw dust and plastic milk bottles) and Ewood (made from printer cartridges).
 
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