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New Regional EPDs Offer Radical Transparency on the Sustainability of Wood

Dive into the cradle-to-gate energy used in the production of softwood lumber in each U.S. region with these new resources from the American Wood Council.

To answer the AEC industry’s call for more granular life cycle impact data, Think Wood’s partner organization the American Wood Council (AWC) has released three new regional Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for the U.S. wood products industry. The industry’s previous softwood lumber EPDs were North American in scope. With growing market interest in more granular EPDs and an enhanced ability to capture mill data through the online data collection platform the AWC has developed with the support of the Softwood Lumber Board, the USDA Forest Service, the U.S. Endowment for Forestry & Communities, CORRIM, and NCASI, the new regional EPDs provide robust data on wood’s environmental footprint.  

The new third-party verified EPDs have been completed for three U.S. regions of softwood lumber production: Pacific Coast (primarily represented by Western Oregon and Washington and California), the Inland Northwest (primarily represented by Eastern Oregon and Washington, Idaho, and Montana) and the South (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia). An EPD for the North/Northeast region will be released in early 2025.

“These regional EPDs are a game-changer for our industry and demonstrate the sector’s eagerness to meet market demands and respond to the climate crisis. They directly address the growing consumer and regulatory interest in data surrounding the environmental impacts of building materials and demonstrate the U.S. wood products industry’s commitment to radical transparency. This suite of EPDs are something the entire U.S. wood products industry should be proud of.”

 

– Rachael Jamison | Vice President of Sustainability and Markets | AWC

One of the differences from region to region is the type of trees that thrive there. According to the EPD, the Pacific Coast region represents 29% of the U.S. softwood lumber milling capacity and grows primarily Douglas fir (73%), in addition to western hemlock, white fir, and ponderosa pine, among others. The Inland Northwest EPD indicates that the region accounts for 9% of the U.S. softwood lumber milling capacity, and grows primarily white fir (40%) and Douglas fir (29%), among others. The U.S. South EPD indicates the region accounts for 56% of the U.S. softwood lumber milling capacity, and grows primarily a southern pine mix (84%). Each EPD represents the energy and materials required for manufacturing the softwood lumber produced in that region from cradle to gate—from harvest until the product leaves the mill. The lumber products manufactured include boards, beams, timbers, and the base material for mass timber products like CLT and glued-laminated timber.

Regardless of region, sustainable forestry practices are used throughout the U.S. to ensure a regenerative growth cycle. Only 2% of the available volume of timber each year from working forests in the U.S. is harvested for softwood lumber, with replanted trees reaching maturity each year.

This data will help architects, engineers, and developers better understand the environmental impacts of the wood structural systems in their buildings. To explore the new regional EPDs, as well as the existing North American softwood lumber EPDs, visit the EPDs and Transparency Briefs section of the AWC’s website, and to learn more about the sustainability of structural wood, visit the sustainability resources at the AWC and at Think Wood.

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