Hardwood Floors August/September 2018

By Dana Lee Cole

opponents of timber harvesting have begun making claims that forest-based biomass is a non-renewable resource. Many outside the wood products industry are unaware of – or refuse to acknowledge – the fact that robust markets for forest products actually promote the health of the nation’s forest resources. e beautiful and long-lived wood products, including ooring produced by the industry, provide critical demand for working forests so that landowners managing those forests can continue to keep those lands as forest lands. A li le-known fact is that most of the forest land in this country is privately owned in parcels that average well under 500 acres. ese small private landowner suppliers depend on a return on investment to keep their holdings forested and not convert them to other uses like row crop agriculture or development. riving markets for forest products are the primary reason there are more forested acres in this country

today than in the 1950s – a period during which the country experienced an unprecedented postwar homebuilding spree. Unfortunately, bumper sticker messaging around saving trees by not using wood is the narrative that has prevailed among many, and it is a myth we continue to debunk on Capitol Hill and in the executive branch. But we are nally seeing consistent progress toward codi ed federal government support for our sustainability message. NWFA members have been incredibly active on this issue, and we thank you for your advocacy. is is just one piece, one important piece, of the overall message we all should be delivering…wood products are environmentally friendly and sustainable! Dana Lee Cole is Executive Director at the Hardwood Federation, a Washington, D.C.-based hardwood industry trade association that represents thousands of hardwood businesses in every state in the U.S. and acts as the industry’s advocacy voice on Capitol Hill. She can be reached at dana.cole@hardwoodfederation.com.

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