Environmental Policy

Policy Statement

Timber from sustainably managed forests is a truly sustainable material and is the responsible and natural choice for many end uses.  We believe that greater use of the wood products which we produce will contribute towards the effective use of the world’s natural resources and thereby help to conserve the world’s reserves of first growth and tropical rain forests.

Timber products are an ideal way to fix carbon reducing greenhouses gases.  Older trees will release carbon dioxide as they decay.  It is therefore essential that we utilise the timber resource effectively to lock away as much carbon as possible.

The logs used in the sawmill are derived from sustainable forests in the United Kingdom, managed under the UK’s stringent forestry standards administered by the Forestry Commission and purchased in line with the EU Timber Regulation 2013.

In addition, we will endeavour to exclude wood described as follows from our supply:

  • Wood harvested from forest areas where traditional or civil rights are violated
  • Wood harvested from non certified forest areas having high conservation values which are threatened
  • Wood harvested from genetically modified (GM) trees
  • Illegally harvested wood
  • Natural forest that has been converted to plantations or non-forest use

The process of converting round timber (logs) to sawn timber and sawmill co-products (sawdust, chips and bark), does not involve the creation of any waste products.  All of the round wood is converted to sawn timber and co-products:  wood chips and sawdust provide a raw material used in the manufacture of wood based sheet material and bark is used for horticultural and amenity uses, including mulches and soil improvers (as an alternative to peat) and as a surface for play areas and equestrian facilities.  Our aim is to operate, as far as is commercially viable and practical, in an environmentally sound way.

Our production process is carefully planned and closely monitored and the aim is to improve on the present high standards as equipment becomes due for replacement.

We are conscious of our location and try to minimise the impact of our operations on the surrounding rural environment.  In particular, we regard general sawmill site housekeeping, maintenance and transport as matters of the highest priority.

Environmental Commitment

We are proud to be manufacturing products from timber, one of the best sustainable building products.  We are fully aware of making best use of the resources available and with timber there are four major processes:

  • Forestry

Growing timber absorbs carbon dioxide, fixes the carbon and releases the oxygen.  As the trees die and decay the process is reversed, so it is important to harvest the trees for timber products to prolong the carbon fixing

  • Sawmilling

Sawing the trees into timber products which fixes the carbon for the life of that product in fencing or building timbers

  • Recycling

Sawn timber products can often be recycled into chipboard where the carbon remains fixed for another period

  • Power

Chipboard products can then be used for generating heat and power finally releasing the carbon back into the atmosphere where the growing forest will again fix the carbon, completing the cycle

The objective is to keep the environment in balance and this principle permeates through many of our policies and actions.

The sawmill was designed with this objective, to suit the locally available round timber supply:

  • All the trees we receive are fully converted into products as sawn timber, woodchips, sawdust and firewood which all have a useful (local) market
  • Timber is purchased on a sustainable basis and we are certified for PEFC.  We also try to buy locally but many small woodland owners are unable to afford the Cerification costs.  It is essential to make best use of all our resources and therefore, in such cases, we ensure it is sustainable with correct felling licenses.

Where sawn timber or finished products are bought in from external suppliers we assess our suppliers to ensure that the timber they use is from sustainable sources and complies with the EU Timber Regulations 2013.

Within the company employees are encouraged to be environmentally sensitive, recycling paper, cardboard and plastic wherever possible.  Our usage of fossil fuels is being reduced and minimised wherever possible with biomass heating being used within the workshop.