Why Wood??

THE LIFE CYCLE OF WOOD Sterling Fence Inc Stage 1 - Resource Extraction Harvesting and removing the resources and transportation of the material. This includes the logging or mining required to retrieve the materials, the equipment used, the building of roads to transport the materials and reforestation efforts. Why Wood? Harvesting wood has been shown to be much less intrusive than the mining of raw materials for steel and concrete such as iron ore, coal and limestone. And advancements in technology have even improved the process. Stage 2 - Manufacturing Preparing the material for use and measuring the amount of energy needed for raw materials to be manufactured into building materials. This includes the cutting of the trees into the different sizes (2x4, 4x6, etc.), and manufacturing steel and concrete from ore and minerals. Why Wood? Compared to a wood 2x4, a steel stud requires 21 times more energy to produce and releases more than 15 times the sulfur dioxide. Producing concrete emits up to three times more carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons than manufacturing lumber. Stage 3 - On-Site Construction Building with the selected materials, including delivering of the materials to the distribution centers, home centers, or building sites and the actual construction of the home. Why Wood? Wood requires very little on-site energy or special machinery to construct. Stage 4 - Occupancy/Maintenance Living in the home continues to impact the environment, including the energy needed to heat and cool your home throughout the year. Why Wood? Wood is a 400 times better insulator than steel and eight times better than concrete. Using wood framing will insure that your house stays cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. Stage 5 - Demolition This stage assesses future impacts that are possible long after a home is lived in, including bio-degradability or reusability of materials during renovations or possible razing. Why Wood? Wood is a completely natural building material that's 100% biodegradable. Some wood is even recycled for use in engineered wood products. Stage 6 - Recycling/Reuse/Disposal Today's sustainable forestry practices ensure a perpetual abundance of cedar from North America's forests. Why Wood? Cedar siding substitutes like concrete, vinyl and aluminum are manufactured from materials extracted from the earth - once removed, they can never be replaced. When substitute sidings age beyond their useful life, they become part of landfills. As a natural product, cedar is fully biodegradable.	Watch the BC Sustainability Video
	Members of the Western Red Cedar Export Association provide western red cedar to Belgium, France, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan and other markets around the world.
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