Timber industry trade associations have come up with a two-point plan to exploit opportunities presented by the Olympic Games in London.
In his weekly e-news to members, Timber Trade Federation (TTF) chief executive John White said: “With sustainability sitting at the heart of the Olympic Games, instinctively this is good news for timber – if we can supply quality, on time and with proper environmental credentials.
“Without these elements in place the work the group agreed to undertake will be undermined. This is very much the work that companies in the industry will have to do, with our help where required, and where competition will no doubt focus. But the representative bodies can play an important role in getting the playing field as level and as advantageous to timber as possible.”
Mr White said the group saw its job as two-fold. Firstly to lobby to help everyone involved in the delivery of the Games fully understand what sustainability in practice really means.
He warned that some theorists who wrote policy documents concluded that sustainability equalled Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification. He said that that would not give organisers all the wood they needed and would exclude other perfectly sustainable sources of supply – at the same time giving less sustainable materials an opportunity.
Mr White said: “We agreed timber procurement should be under CPET principles and will be taking this message to [environment minister] Elliot Morley when we met him in the new year.”
The group also agreed to develop a marketing plan which, said Mr White, would aim to demonstrate to specifers and contractors “what a fantastic, flexible and desirable product wood is”.
