Online Reuse & Recycling Directory Helps with Sustainable Wood Construction

The green building movement is inspiring an exciting new trend: reclaimed wood.

Not only does using reclaimed wood help reduce the environmental impact of buildings and take discarded wood out of solid waste streams, but there is also a large opportunity being missed with the amount of materials available. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there is approximately 1 billion feet of usable lumber generated from demolished buildings each year.[1]

With this opportunity in mind, the American Wood Council, in partnership with the Canadian Wood Council and Building Materials Reuse Association, just announced its new Wood Reuse and Recycling Directory for North America. Hosted online at www.ReuseWood.org, the Directory was developed as a resource to educate builders, designers and consumers on the many specific opportunities to salvage, recycle and reuse wood products, in turn reducing waste.

The website serves to connect vendors and customers who are looking to either appropriately recycle their used wood products or sustainably source reclaimed materials for a project. For example, a building deconstruction team might use the website to identify and contact a nearby recycling vendor in order to responsibly dispose of their used wood products. Or, a builder hoping to find locally recycled wood for acoustic use in the atrium of a building can use the Directory to find a specific wood products reuse dealer in their area.

Key features of the Directory include:

• A comprehensive business directory of companies involved in recycling and reuse of wood products, accessible via both an interactive map and list format;
• Individual listing pages that detail contact information, location and available services for each business; and,
• A sustainable wood guide with useful information and articles detailing different wood products and the many opportunities for wood reuse or recycling.

The use of recycled materials is a great way to help reduce the carbon impact of the built environment and to meet ambitious green objectives. I hope you can join us in sharing this resource with friends and colleagues who may be interested. Please don’t hesitate to contact me or visit www.awc.org if you would like to learn more about the environmental benefits of wood construction and how to responsibly source and recycle wood products.