Timber in Context
A
Guide to
Sustainable Use
by Anne-Marie Willis and Cameron Tonkin
(Australian Publication)
Softcover
195 x 230mm
170pp
Published by CIS Australia P/L, Sydney
R.R.P.$49.50
ISBN 0-9586187-0-4
As reviewed in The Australian Woodworker Issue 83
Trees are a vital part of life on this planet, yet they also provide us with timber, one of our most important resources. Between the extremes of commercial devastation and total conservation, there is an increasing cry for sustainable use, but what does this mean in real terms?
A new book on the subject, Timber in Context, has been written by Anne-Marie Willis and Cameron Tonkin, of the EcoDesign Foundation, a non-profit organisation set up to develop new knowledge and practices of ecological sustainment. Research was funded by Interior Directions, a Sydney-based company specialising in management and construction of commercial interior fit-outs, and the book has been published by Construction information Systems Australia Pty Ltd, best known for their publication of NATSPEC, a widely used building specification system.
At around 140 pages of text, tables, maps and charts, Timber in Context is a solid treatise on the sustainable use of timber in Australia. It is not a book just for academics, having been written in an easy-to-read style to suit the widest possible audience, from high school students to politicians and business leaders. The concepts involved are complex. The authors strongly discourage the adoption of a simple 'one-size-fits-all' solution to the debate and take pains to point out the inherent flaws in views commonly held at the present time. Arbitrary delineation is a particular problem. What is the 'natural environment' in a previously logged forest? Is a plantation forest worth the loss of the logging area cleared to make way for the plantation? What is a 'plantation' timber or a 'rainforest' timber when the source of timber supplies can't be readily verified? Is timber harvested from plantations for short-term single use a better utilisation of resources than timber taken from regrowth forests for long term recyclable applications?
Following on from a fact-based overview of Australian timber resources and usage, the authors discuss the implications of the present situation and the importance of increasing the value of the resource, by extending the life (durability) of the timber, developing value-added applications (eg. furniture instead of woodchips, where appropriate) and encouraging recycling (designing building components for re-use rather than demolition).
The remainder of the book is given over to a discussion of the direction of Australia's timber policy reforms, the significance of the growing use of environmental requirements for commercial building projects, and the criteria to be considered when selecting timber products. Specific tables and guidelines have been provided to give designers useful practical information, but the book stops short of the rigid classifications often provided in other publications, for the reasons discussed at length in the earlier chapters.
If Timber in Context has a flaw, it is that it is possible to misquote the intent of the authors by selecting narrow passages from its contents. However, to do so would be to risk being resoundingly refuted by someone who had read the book more thoroughly. The authors have laid out the material in a format for easy reference, but it is most important to first read the book from cover to cover.
A thought-provoking, open-minded and heavily-researched contribution to a most important debate, Timber in Context is essential reading for anyone with an interest in timber use, selection or design; conservation, forestry, tree-farming, woodworking, building, architecture, landscaping or furniture making.
Photos: Colour Section
Units of Measurement: Metric
Contents
Introduction
Forests to Products - The Big Picture
Timber Production - Environmental and Ecological Impacts
Timber Supply - Political and Economic Responses
Timber Design - Relational Responses
Timber Applications - Guide to Selection
Appendices
Timber Properties Table
Australian Hardwood Sawlog Production
International
Certified Sustainably Managed Forestry Sources
Bibliography
Index