Wood should be one of the greenest building products. After all, the primary energy input in its production is sunlight, via photosynthesis; woodlands provide wildlife habitat and places for humans to enjoy nature; and, as a natural product, wood is totally biodegradable.

Yet wood is often perceived as not being a green product. That's because conventional forestry practices can carry heavy environmental burdens. Many forests are intensively managed as monocultures, planted in just one species and sometimes dosed with herbicides to eliminate others. Extensive clear-cuts and even-aged stands (trees all about the same age) do not provide the varied habitat needed by many plant and animal species. Road construction and logging practices often result in extensive erosion and siltation of streams and rivers. Such practices do not produce forests that support healthy, rich ecosystems.

In an effort to use market pressure to bring about a shift to more sustainable forestry practices, a number of concerned woodworkers formed the Rainforest Alliance in the late 1980s and created the first wood certification program, SmartWood, in 1989. This effort was expanded internationally with other organizations, leading in 1993 to the formation of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

The idea with forest certification is to establish standards for responsible forestry and then have independent, third-party organizations certify that the forestry operations of companies or landowners meet those standards. Wood products derived from those forest operations carry certification stamps. By seeking out certified wood products (and sometimes paying more for them), buyers create incentives for sustainable management of forests.

There are a number of certification systems for forests, but most experts acknowledge that the standards developed by FSC remain the most rigorous. Along with periodically updating these standards, FSC accredits organizations to carry out on-the-ground certifications. In North America there are two organizations, the SmartWood program of the Rainforest Alliance, and Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), that carry out most such certifications. As of January 2006, a total of 60 million acres of timberlands in North America and 170 million acres worldwide were certified under FSC guidelines.

To be sure that you are buying wood products that come from an FSC-certified forest, look for the FSC logo. Wood from these forests can be tracked through processing, manufacturing, and warehousing so that the finished product can carry a certification label. This process is referred to as "chain-of-custody" certification, and it is how you can be sure that wood products you buy indeed came from FSC-certified forests. A wide range of wood products is now available with such designation: lumber, plywood, furniture, even musical instruments and paper.

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