Strategies and interventions to support the timber industry: literature review

Sustainable management of woodlands

Many countries in Europe manage their woodlands through sustainable forest management approaches including both continuous cover forestry and clear felling and re-stocking. Evidence suggests that both can make positive contributions to carbon sequestration with timber extracted continuing to store carbon if used for long-term purposes e.g. in construction. Over the longer term the difference in carbon sequestration using different management scenarios is less pronounced.

Promotion of wood as a construction product

Internationally, changes to regulations, standards and building codes have been suggested or introduced to encourage the use of timber in construction specifically.

Education and knowledge sharing

Education and knowledge sharing was identified as an approach to encourage:

• sustainable forestry practices
• use wood as a construction product amongst industry professionals
• farmers to undertake productive forestry practices by highlighting the benefits to their farm
• physiological and psychological benefits of exposed wood in buildings including in health care settings
• opportunities to increase housing supply
• opportunities to meet sustainability targets by utilising wood’s carbon storage potential

Grants and financial support

The use of grants and financial support were identified in the literature to encourage sustainable forestry practices and to support farmers to diversify into tree planting and sustainable forest management.

Social benefits

Social benefits of a high-value timber industry identified in the literature included:

• physiological and psychological benefits of exposed wood in buildings including in health care settings
• opportunities to increase housing supply
• opportunities to meet sustainability targets by utilising wood’s carbon storage potential
• job opportunities associated with new or growing industries