Wood is Good

1. Wood is carbon neutral
(Because trees absorb CO2 as they grow). In fact, because of the carbon sink effect of the forests, wood from sustainably managed forests can actually be better than carbon neutral.
If you use enough wood, a building can be carbon neutral or better!


2. Wood has the lowest embodied energy of any mainstream building material
A tonne of brick requires four times the amount of energy to produce sawn softwood, concrete five times, glass six times, steel 24 times and aluminium 126 times.

3. Using wood instead of other building materials saves on average 0.9 tonnes of carbon dioxide per cubic metre.

4. Wood has the best thermal insulation properties of any mainstream construction material
5 times better than concrete
10 times better than brick
350 times better than steel

5. Certified timber and timber products have Environmental Profiles which can contribute to achieving higher Green Guide ratings and higher star ratings in the Code for Sustainable Homes.

6. Trees absorb one tonne of carbon dioxide for every cubic metre's growth