Co-author Michael Green explains, “To slow and contain greenhouse gas emissions and find truly sustainable solutions to building, we must look at the fundamentals of the way we build – from the bones of large urban building structures to the details of energy performance. We need to search for the big picture solutions of today’s vast climate, environmental, economic and world housing needs.”
I personally thought this article was very relevantly important to me since as a group research project our group has chosen to discuss about potential of timber as sustainable construction material. The study introduces a new construction model for tall buildings known as ‘Finding the Forest Through the Trees’ (FFTT). This structural solution utilizes mass timber panels – solid panels of wood engineered for strength through laminations of different layers – to achieve a much lighter carbon footprint than the functionally equivalent concrete and steel systems.It’s an interesting concept. The idea is that the trees as they grow, absorb the carbon dioxide. If they’re cut down, the wood will hold the carbon forever, until it decomposes or is burnt. If it’s burnt, it gets released back into the atmosphere, but if it decomposes, most of it goes back into the soil. So essentially, it really does work as a carbon sink, and is actually carbon *negative*, better than carbon neutral. As for mass harvesting of trees, this report is out of BC where they have a strong sustainable forestry industry.
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