The cradle of sustainability is rooted in forestry which is manifested in the following principle:
the number of trees cut down must equal the number of trees planted.
This plausible statement on the restriction of the number of trees to be cut was written down by Hannß Carl von Carlowitz in his treatise “Silvicultura oeconomica” in 1713. This reflection arose in response to the rapid deforestation taking place especially in proximity to mines and smelting works combined with four successive very dry winters and summers and the resulting bark beetle infestation of trees in Germany at this time.
Carlowitz has recognized instantaneously that a change in the use of resources (here: trees) is needed to keep the existing industries (mining and smelting) alive. He acted in a truly sustainable way since he considered ecological, economic and social aspects and finally communicated them so that others could follow his thoughts and learn.
Knowing about the roots of sustainability, it is not very surprising that the paper industry as a descendent of forestry or better as part of wood related industries has advanced in terms of sustainability at a much faster pace than other industries. The paper industry has been pushing R&D towards sustainable solutions since years. This comprises the R&D of recycling, expanding the range of products and valorisation of by-products of the paper making, namely lignin.
Lignin as a by-product amounts to about 70 million tons per year globally which are currently mostly burnt for electrical energy generation. The paper industry in Sweden is a good example showing that the transformation of an unsustainable way of economic activity towards a sustainable one is wanted. Here, three big players in the pulp and paper business have merged to a governmental organization and devoted themselves to boost innovation of wood related products with various international R&D programmes for a sustainable society. For instance, they put enormous effort in producing carbon fibers from lignin which can then be used as electrodes in batteries or other energy storage devices or even as structural fibers. If this undertaking succeeds a big source of CO2 emissions, namely the burn-off of lignin for energy generation, is turned into a CO2 sink by using the lignin for the manufacture of functional materials.
Interestingly, if we look further back into the past, before Carlowitz’s time, we can find an example of truly unsustainable use of forests with long sustaining effects still visible in Iceland. The island with an area of about 103 km2 is mainly wood (and even vegetation) -free owing to the clearcutting by Vikings.
At that time, they considered only the short-term benefits of wood as construction material, but did not take into account the mid- or long-term effects of the exploitation. It is even worsened by the fact that there is hardly any soil in Iceland as it is a very young island on a geological time scale. Up to now, none of the re-forestation programmes could substantially change this situation.
Let’s take on more of Carlowitz’s attitude following the contemporary example of R&D in the paper industry and less of Viking behaviour, so that people living in the future won’t think of us as Vikings, but as responsible and far-sighted generation.
Soon, I am going to post examples of forest-based products that are in development or already commercially available and implemented. I hope to be able to reveal the advantages to other products/materials.
Moreover, I will present any sustainable projects that tries to implement all four aspects of sustainability:
ecological, economical, social aspects and their communication to a wide audience (transparency).
I am grateful for any inspiration from you! Ideas for sustainable projects which should find their way to this place or feedback to posts are very welcome! I am looking forward to nice discussions as there are always various angles to look at things!