2Sustain

New lifecycle assessment (LCA) data from the Dow Chemical Company’s Building Solutions Group shows that thermal insulation plays a key role in the building sector to reduce energy consumption and related green house gas (GHG) emissions.

This new LCA study examined each stage of Dow’s insulated sheathing product’s life cycle (raw material extraction, production, delivery, use and disposal) to determine the total amount of CO2 emissions that occur in order to use the insulation. The results showed that, over the life cycle of Dow’s insulation products, the GHG emissions saved are, on average, 48 times greater than the GHGs emitted to produce, use and dispose of the product itself.

In addition, Dow says the results validate that its insulated sheathing products –when properly installed –are estimated to provide energy-saving benefits that last for more than 50 years.

According to an earlier McKinsey & Company study, improving building insulation is one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce GHG emissions and lower energy costs. (more…)

Over the past decade, various stakeholders have collaborated internationally to combat illegal logging and forest degradation, and now new research says these efforts are beginning to pay off.

The 154-page report, Illegal Logging and Related Trade: Indicators of the Global Response, is an in-depth study of the timber trade in twelve producer, processing and consumer countries, and it includes several encouraging indicators of progress in the fight against illegal logging and related trade. For example: (more…)

A compromise deal that will ban illegal timber from Europe is near completion, some seven years after the EU first planned to crack down on the black market for wood products.

According to Greenpeace, the new agreement –which still needs the formal agreement of the full Parliament and Council before it can become law –will send a clear signal to the market that illegal timber is prohibited and ultimately, drive systemic changes in the forestry industry.

“If this law is passed, illegal timber will be banned from Europe,” explains Greenpeace EU forest policy director, Sebastien Risso . ’The world’s largest market is about to shut its gates to companies profiting from illegal trafficking and forest destruction. The black market for wood products is often run by criminals fueling conflict, robbing governments of revenue and causing irreversible environmental destruction. With this law, the black economy for wood products in Europe will be closed for business, leveling the playing field so companies are better able to act sustainably.”

The new law will mean that companies in Europe will be required to (more…)

With more than 500 locations across the United Kingdom, Jewson is the UK’s leading timber and building materials supplier. What’s more, the company knows a little something about the different facets of the word “sustainability,” too. First of all, Jewson has been in business for over 170 years –the first branch opened in Cambridgeshire in 1836. Secondly, the company has made a name for itself with an unwavering commitment to eco-friendly building solutions.  As part of the Saint-Gobain Building Distribution Group, Europe’s number one building materials distributor, Jewson plays an important role in helping customers source products and services for sustainable construction.

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