Sustainable timber grows in popularity

The world market for certified timber is growing as products' manufacturers branch out into new areas for the material, certifiers have claimed.
Last week, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) said its products account for £2.6bn - two-thirds higher than it previously believed.
FSC marketing manager Nick Cliffe told CJ: "More and more people, particularly in public sector construction, are specifying sustainable timber. The government's Central Point of Expertise on Timber has done good things to raise awareness in general."
Construction adviser Beck Woodrow said timber sheet materials are mostly certified and the FSC is seeing manufacturers using certified timber in offsite construction and roof joists.
The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) will have to wait until next week to hear if the government will endorse it as sustainable, following its rejection last year. Chairman Len Yull said: "At the moment, we're sitting waiting, but the light's still green."
He said PEFC is developing a scheme to cover Brazilian timber. Yull added: "When that comes through, it will address the serious problems that importers have."