ISO 14000

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is the world's largest developer and publisher of international standards. The ISO 14000 environmental management standards (EMS) are an approach to help business and government minimize negative environmental impacts and meet environmental challenges and regulations with regard to all operational practices including forest practices. Similar to the ISO 9000 quality management, ISO 14000 is process rather than product oriented and adherence is
strictly voluntary. The focus is on requiring an organization to develop environmental goals, map out how to get there, and take corrective action where necessary. While the notion of improvement is central and performance goals are set, actual performance standards are not required, leaving open the possibility that companies can use a "we're really trying" approach but continue to sweep adverse impacts under the carpet.

ISO 14000 certifies a management system, rather than a forest product, leaving consumers in the dark as to whether the products they buy are actually from sustainable sources. Critics claim there is the potential for ISO-certified producers to use their certification to confuse rather than enlighten consumers and even to adopt the EMS approach in order to avoid having to earn the more expensive FSC labels.

American Tree Farm System

Created in 1941 to bring public attention to proper management of private forests, the American Tree Farm System is the oldest certification system in the U.S. Sponsored by the American Forest Foundation, the program is available to private forest owners throughout the United States and has focused on smaller, family owned forests. Owners must have a written management plan and pass inspection every five years to be certified. Nearly 60,000 landowners participate in the program, most of whom own a minimum 10 acres of forested land. The program currently has an agreement with SFI and is pursuing endorsement of its standard
by the international Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification, the world's largest certification organization.

Tropical Forest Foundation

Founded in 1990, the Tropical Forest Foundation (TFF) grew out of a Smithsonian Institution workshop of industry, science and conservation leaders. The foundation promotes sustainable tropical forest management primarily through teaching and demonstration projects on reduced impact logging practices. TFF operates these logging practices in the world's major tropical timber-producing areas, including the Amazon, Indonesia, the Asian Pacific and the Congo Basin. TFF operates a reduced impact logging certification program that is viewed by the organization as a stepping stone to full forest certification.

 

Wood Windows for Renovation Original windows in historic buildings, sometimes hundreds of years old, are usually wood. Although local and federal historic preservation offices strongly recommend repair instead of replacement, when damage is too extensive and replacement is necessary, some local guidelines have allowed only wood to replace wood, as in the Armstrong Quinlan house in St. Paul, Minnesota, pictured below. Built in 1886, the house incorporated a unique blend of architectural styles that eventually led to its being placed on The National Register of Historic Places. For its renovation, more than 65 new windows were designed and custom-built to match historical standards, including double-hung living room windows and a triple set of windows crowned with round tops in the master bedroom. It should be noted that the preservation community is showing an increasing leniency toward allowing clad wood to replace original wood for reasons of low maintenance and durability, if profiles can successfully replicate the historically significant windows

 

Wood for Windows and Doors - A Guide to Popular Species

Doors and windows are made from a variety of hardwoods or softwoods. Some of the more popular species used for these applications are discussed below.

Softwoods

Pine. "Pine is the standard wood for windows," says Marvin's Wallace. "Its total mix of attributes makes it a natural choice for window frames and sashes." Strong, dimensionally stable, durable and reasonably priced, pine has a uniform texture and good workability; it finishes well and resists shrinkage, swelling and warping. The heartwood is straight-grained and of a light brown, often red-tinged, color that darkens with exposure to air. Pine is easily kiln dried and glued.

Douglas Fir. Also used for windows, Douglas fir grows plentifully from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast. It is also a strong, dimensionally stable wood that finishes well and works well, meaning it takes precision milling and can hold intricate details. Douglas fir has a light rosy color that darkens when exposed to sunlight and is highly prized when sawn to a clear vertical grain, the highest quality grade available. Douglas fir may be specified in vertical or flat grain, but when unspecified, a combination of
vertical and flat grain may be shipped. Some prefer fir's warm tones and richness to pine.

Tropical Woods

For exterior entry doors, where both the amount and visibility of the wood used is higher than in windows, consumers often look for premium woods. American hardwoods are a popular choice, but tropical woods are gaining favor as demand grows for a varied aesthetic with unusual colors and grains. The U.S. Commerce
Department reports a 43 percent increase in imported tropical hardwood lumber over the 1990s. Particularly with tropical woods, beauty can also mean practicality. Because of their slow growth, many tropicals tend to be very dense, which means their grain is apt to be more uniform and the wood itself tends to be stronger, more durable and dimensionally stable. Continues at ce.ArchitecturalRecord.com.

Honduran Mahogany. With a mix of properties that make it desirable from an aesthetic and practical standpoint, many consider the premier species for entry doors to be Honduran Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), commonly known as "big leaf" mahogany. Mahogany occurs naturally from southern Mexico through Central America and as far south as Brazil and, while endangered, vulnerable or rare in some spots, is considered secure in Honduras and other areas in Central America, where it is grown in managed forests and plantations within its natural range. True mahogany has a fine uniform grain that is not coarse or wavy, and varies from a pale pink or salmon color to reddish brown and medium red color that deepens and enhances with age.

Easily air-dried or kiln-dried without warping or checking, mahogany holds its shape and provides a good fit with minimal shrinking or swelling due to weather. Neither too hard nor too soft, the wood is easily worked by hand or machine tools; it is the ideal density to be cut and shaped by craftsmen and lends itself easily to hand-carved appliqués, embossing and engraving. Mahogany is among the best woods for machining and planing and it yields sharp, crisp edges when routered. It also is easy to finish and takes a polish with good results.
Of prime importance are mahogany's natural properties of decay, insect resistance and dimensional stability. Extractives in the wood decrease its tendencies to rot and help ward off insect infestation - so much so that mahogany has been used for centuries in shipbuilding, and in the iconic American power boat, the Criss-Craft. Mahogany's drawbacks can include price and availability.

Of particular note, when specifying mahogany, caveat emptor. While the Latin botanical names for various wood species are fixed, common names are often changed for species imported into the U.S. under the guise of marketing. One species may be named mahogany based on a similar appearance, although no genetic relationship exists. African Mahogany, from the family Khaya ivorensis or K.anthotheca, is primarily found in the Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Nigeria. Sapele (Entandrophragma cylindricum) is also marketed as African Mahogany and grows in the countries of Cameroon and Zaire. Besides these species' susceptibility to being targeted by illegal loggers and grown in countries where unsustainable over-logging is sometimes permitted, their general properties - particularly in decay-resistance, dimensional stability and grain uniformity - is inferior to those of Honduran Mahogany. Another type of wood, the Lauan genus (Shorea) contains about 70 species and is marketed as Philippine Mahogany. Lauan species range from the softness of basswood to harder than oak and may range in color from pale gray to reddish brown. Most are coarsely textured with little decay resistance. The so-called Philippine Mahoganies are not stable, and are prone to warping and shrinking.

Cedro Macho. A plentiful, tropical hardwood that grows in Central America is cedro macho, (Carapa guianensis) also known as andiroba, cedar macho, carapa, crabwood. Except for a more open grain, cedro macho is similar to Honduran Mahogany in appearance with the same dark reddish brown color. It exhibits much the same workability and durability as mahogany, but shows a slight reduction in resistance to decay and insects.