Carter Holt Harvey Woodproducts Australia, a producer of timber products from plantation forests, has taken the lead in supporting the timber industry’s environmental push, announcing today details of its green credentials campaign ‘Wood, Naturally’.
The announcement supports the theme of Wood Naturally Better, which was a campaign launched earlier this month by the Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA) industry organisation, of which Carter Holt Harvey is a key member.
Carter Holt Harvey’s own environmental credentials campaign was established internally in 2007 to communicate the company’s ethical, environmental and sustainability credentials to stakeholders and to rally their operations to achieve ideal practice benchmarks and accountability.
Carter Holt Harvey’s Chief Executive, Jim Snelson said the company had benefited from a strong internal process and was keen to show leadership to the industry. The forest and wood products industry is the only production sector that stores more carbon dioxide than it releases into the atmosphere. Wood is one of the most important carbon stores and continues to store carbon after being turned into products.
Choosing wood over energy-intensive building materials such as concrete, steel, aluminium and brick can have a substantial impact on carbon emissions. FWPA’s research has found that 25 tonnes of carbon per Australian home could be saved by choosing wood where possible.
Carter Holt Harvey’s campaign consists of an educational video, brochure and regular newsletters supplied to their 2,900 staff and stakeholders. Snelson has commented that Carter Holt Harvey’s environmental programme outlines the actions taken by them to achieve national targets for a sustainable built environment. They believe by demonstrating the credentials of wood and providing clear information to consumers.
Educating the public about the positive carbon store benefits of ethically sourced timber can make a huge difference to carbon emissions in Australia, which can result in educated consumers choosing wood products rather than alternatives when building and furnishing their homes.
The FWPA’s new campaign creates an important platform for discussion and change within the industry, encouraging all wood product providers to be accountable, ethical and environmentally aware in their actions. As a green, renewable building product, wood is an important resource for the Australian building industry and Carter Holt Harvey take their commitment to the environment seriously.
Carter Holt Harvey’s campaign also communicates the actions the company is taking on waste reduction and recycling, ethical sourcing of timber and investment in plantation forests. Carter Holt Harvey operate production plants in NSW, Qld, Victoria and SA and sources wood only from certified plantation pine.