Environmental policy

Background

There is a lot of attention being paid by the general media to environmental impact in particular Carbon Footprint. The impact we all have on the environment is a vast and complex subject. Each living organism on this planet has an impact. As human beings we tend to have the greatest impact, be it from running the children to school to the business we run.

Although related I have discussed the Carbon Footprint issue separately here.

Carbon Footprint

Wood is a natural product, in its crowing cycle it absorbs Carbon from the environment. So if you use wood as a fuel its carbon footprint is zero. However if you use wood for say a Tapestry bobbin its carbon footprint is negative i.e. there is carbon locked in the wood. The above is a simplified view as energy is used in the transportation and processing of the wood. However the same is true of other resources we use.

So in comparison to say the plastic in a child’s toy made in China or the flat screen TV made in Taiwan, wood even from Brazil has a very low carbon footprint.

Environmental impact

This is a much more difficult and far reaching topic. It ranges from deforestation to energy consumption to pollution. As a small business I use relatively small amounts of energy and consumables. As always I buy with the environment in mind. My waste is 95% wood, most of which is burnt for heating. My shavings are given to my landlord for bedding for his daughter’s horses.

One of the main concerns people have when buying an item made from wood particularly exotic hardwoods is deforestation. It should be noted that most of the deforestation particularly in Brazil is the result of land clearance for farming, some is indiscriminate logging.

The United Kingdom has signed the CITES treaty and more importantly adheres to it.

I am a small firm so cannot source my exotic wood directly so I only buy from suppliers that operate an active environmental policy. That is to say they source their exotic wood from sensitively managed plantation or from environmentally conscious logging company and where possible the indigenous people.

When this type of policy is operated it can in fact have a positive effect on the environment. The placement of a greater value on the trees themselves helps to resist the pressures to clear fell and encourages the proper management of the forests. So buy an exotic hardwood bobbin or spindle and help support the environment.

So to sum up compared to most other resources we use, wood is a very environmentally friendly product. This taken with an active policy to buy from ethically managed sources means you can buy an IST Crafts product knowing that you are having the minimum impact on the environment.