Responsible Wood Timber Feature, page 43 of the Master Builder Victoria magazine…
The Portsea Surf Life Saving Club, described by the Herald Sun newspaper as ‘once in a generation’ project has been featured in the January-March 2020 edition of Master Builders Victoria.
Built by Ireland Brown Constructions and the club building features large commercial grade Blackbutt timber supplied by Boral Timber carrying the all-important Responsible Wood Chain of Custody certification.
According to Responsible Wood Marketing and Communications Officer Jason Ross, Chain of Custody offers important assurances for building practitioners.
With more than 90% of all commercial forestry in Australia certified under the scheme, a large majority of pine framing and Australian hardwoods are likely sourced from Responsible Wood certified forests.
‘Many businesses that supply framing and hardwoods to builders are businesses that participate in the Responsible Wood Chain of Custody scheme.’
‘Chain of Custody, by its very nature, demonstrates that timbers processed and sold to Master Builders are sourced from forests that meet benchmarks for the environment, as well as Australian Standards, economic and social benchmarks,” Mr Ross said.
‘For Responsible Wood, it all starts in the forest; forests that are covered by our scheme are assessed by independent certification bodies by auditing forest management systems to ensure that forests are harvested responsibly, wildlife is protected and workers are compensated in accordance with award level standards.’
Chain of Custody supports sustainable forest management by providing an unbroken supply chain ensuring that responsibly harvested timbers in the forest are passed onto the end-user of timber or paper-based products.
‘This is the bedrock of the Responsible Wood Certification Scheme,’ Mr Ross said.
Mr Ross said using Responsible Wood certified timber in projects, could increase builders’ eligibility to work on government projects, because Government contractors are required under Australian law, to procure timber materials that meet Australian Standards. Another consideration, and perhaps the more pressing issue moving forward, is the timber legality requirements captured in the Commonwealth Government’s Illegal Logging Prohibition Act, he said.”
“We live more and more in a global society, where timber is traded to and from exotic parts of the world. Under Australian law, builders must source foreign timber from sources that do not contravene the laws of the country of origin.”
“What Responsible Wood provides, and through mutual recognition with PEFC, is evidence which can be used by Master Builders to demonstrate the legality of timber sourced anywhere in the world.”
