Industry Progress Report:
ENVIRONMENT,
ENERGY & SAFETY
INTRODUCTION
The American Wood Council (AWC) is the voice of North American wood products manufacturing, representing over 75 percent of an industry that provides
approximately 400,000 men and women with family-wage jobs. AWC members
make products that are essential to everyday life from a renewable resource that
absorbs and sequesters carbon. Staff experts develop state-of-the-art engineering data, technology, and standards for wood products to assure their safe and
efficient design, as well as provide information on wood design, green building,
and environmental regulations. AWC also advocates for balanced government
policies that affect wood products.
AWC members are very proud of their record of mill safety, energy management
and efficiency, and protection of the environment while producing products that
are central to the lives and homes of all Americans.
This is the first published AWC Environment, Energy, and Safety Report. Based on
2010 and 2012 data collected from the industry in 2011 and 2013, it shows that
despite the economic downturn from 2007 to mid-2009 causing a drop in wood
products manufacturing, manufacturers have made considerable environment,
energy and safety improvements.
Many factors influence individual parameters so it is important to look at longer
term trends rather than changes between years. The Report also provides some
economic and employment data for the last decade.
KEY FINDINGS
n The Greenhouse Gas reduction benefits
of using biomass manufacturing residuals for energy by the wood products industry are equivalent to removing about
4.6 million cars from the road per year.
n Among the entire manufacturing sector,
the wood products industry is the largest
user of biomass energy in terms of its
percentage share of total energy use.
n Emission releases of formaldehyde and
methanol have been reduced by more
than half and a third respectively in the
last several years due to resin reformulations and millions of dollars in investments in pollution controls.
n Safety at mills as measured by Reportable Cases has improved by 40 percent
over the last decade.
n Energy intensity has improved significantly coming out of the recession returning
to pre-recession levels with carbon-neutral, renewable biomass representing
about 75 percent of total energy use.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILE
Chemical Releases
Formaldehyde - Formaldehyde emissions intensity of reporting AWC members,
expressed in pounds per thousand cubic feet of products produced, has been
declining continuously since 2006. Between 2003 and 2012, release intensity has
decreased 56 percent. The more recent declines are probably due to a combination of required air pollution controls and product reformulation efforts to reduce
formaldehyde in resins.
CHART 1: Formaldehyde Release Intensity
Pounds per 1,000 cubic feet of production
3
2
1
0
2003
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: EPA (for facilities reporting to AWC/AF&PA Surveys)
Methanol - Methanol emissions intensity of AWC member companies, expressed in pounds per thousand cubic feet of wood products produced, remained essentially flat during 2003-2008. Since 2008, intensity has declined from
4.2 pounds/MCF to 2.8 pounds/MCF in 2012, a reduction of 33 percent.
Improvements in methanol emissions are associated with Clean Air Act requirements to capture and destroy methanol from various presses, dryers and other
process equipment that went into effect in 2008.
CHART 2: Methanol Release Intensity
5
Pounds per 1,000 cubic feet of production
4
LIFE CYCLE
PERFORMANCE
3
2
1
0
2003
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: EPA (for facilities reporting to AWC/AF&PA Surveys)
Toxic Release Inventory - The following chart tracks total Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) releases per MCF (thousand cubic feet) of wood products production
for AWC member companies that reported to the AWC survey. The data were
obtained from EPA’s TRI.
Total TRI release intensity has been trending downward since 2003. Between
2003 and 2012, intensity decreased 44 percent.
CHART 3: Total TRI Release Intensity
6
Pounds per 1,000 cubic feet of production
5
4
3
2
1
0
2003
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: EPA (for facilities reporting to AWC/AF&PA Surveys)
The North American wood products industry
is committed to sustainability in its products
and their use. In support of this commitment, and as a way to stimulate product
improvement, the industry undertook to
prepare and publish third-party verified
Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs)
and Transparency Briefs that capture and
describe the environmental performance of
many of the products we produce.
As noted, all North American wood industry
EPDs have been independently third-party
verified by UL Environment (ULE), a business
unit of Underwriters Laboratories. ULE verifies that EPDs conform to the requirements
of ISO 14025, the global standard governing
EPDs. ULE’s review looks at both the underlying life-cycle assessments as well as the data
reported in the EPDs.
EPDs for the wood products industry can be
found on www.awc.org.
The next two largest energy source categories for 2012 were Purchased Electricity at 13.5 percent and Natural Gas at 9.9 percent. Natural gas share of total energy
consumption increased from 6.6 percent in 2010 to 9.9 percent in 2012.
The 2012 biomass-use data maintained the decade-long trend, shown in the
chart below, in which wood products facilities have typically derived about 75
percent of their energy needs from carbon neutral biomass. As noted above,
this use of biomass also replaces the use of fossil fuels and reduces landfilling of
residues, conserving landfill space and avoiding methane emissions. In terms of
percentage share of total energy use, the wood products industry is the largest
user of biomass energy among all manufacturing sectors, making it a leader in
renewable energy use.
ENERGY PROFILE
CHART 5: Biomass share of total energy consumption
Wood products facilities use all parts of the raw material not only to manufacture
products used every day, but also to generate most of the energy needed for
production. Data submitted to AWC’s Survey indicate that member companies
met almost 75 percent of their energy needs from renewable, carbon neutral
biomass energy in 2012.
90
CHART 4: 2012 Wood Product Facility Energy Sources
50
Percentage
Percentage
100
80
70
60
40
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: 2010, 2012 data from AWC Environment, Energy and Safety Survey;
AF&PA EH&S Survey for previous years
Biomass Fuels
Chart 6 shows energy use trends for the wood products sector since 2004.
Though total energy use has trended downward since 2004 due to a drop in
production, the intensities have remained within a narrow range during the
2004-2012 period. Small variations likely result from energy use not being directly
proportional to production and inefficiencies occurring when facilities operate at
lower production rates than normal.
Purchased Electricity
Natural Gas
Purchased Steam
Other Fossil Fuels
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
CHART 6: Energy Use Intensity
80
Source: AWC Environment, Energy and Safety Survey
0.12
By using its biomass manufacturing residuals, the wood products industry is harnessing the energy value of the CO2 before it is lost to the atmosphere through other
means or in form of methane, a much more potent greenhouse gas. Additionally, by
using biomass, the industry displaces fossil fuel use and its associated emissions.
0.10
A recent study by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI)
shows that the greenhouse gas reduction benefits of using biomass manufacturing residuals for energy by the wood products industry are equivalent to about
24 million tons of carbon dioxide. This is equivalent to removing approximately
4.6 million cars from the road each year.
0.04
Million BTUs/ MCF Production
0.08
0.06
0.02
0.00
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: 2010, 2012 data from AWC Environment, Energy and Safety Survey;
AF&PA EH&S Survey for previous years
Chart 8 provides a comparison of the safety performance of AWC members with
that of the entire manufacturing sector.
Data reported to the AWC survey indicates a 2012 recordable incidence rate of
2.5. This compares with a 2012 rate of 4.3 for all manufacturing as reported by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The 2012 lost-work-day case rate for reporting AWC companies was 0.61, a small
decrease compared to 2010. The lost-work-day case rate was 1.1 for all manufacturing as reported by the BLS.
CHART 8: 2012 Safety Rates Comparison
5
SAFETY PROFILE
Over the last decade, safety at wood products manufacturing mills, as measured
by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Recordable Case
Incidence Rate, has improved by 40 percent.
The OSHA recordable incidence rate is calculated as the number of recordable
injuries and illness cases occurring among 100 full-time employees over a period
of one year.
The recordable incidence rate dropped from 3.4 in 2004 to 2.0 in 2008. While still
lower than the high in 2004, it has been edging up during the past two reporting
cycles - 2.3 in 2010 and 2.5 in 2012. This may be a result of increased hiring of
new employees and temporary workers as mills expanded production in recent
years, with these workers having less experience with mill safety programs.
CHART 7: AWC Members Recordable Case Rate
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: 2010, 2012 data from AWC Environment, Energy and Safety Survey;
AF&PA EH&S Survey for previous years
4
3
2
1
0
Recordable Incident
Rate
Days Away From Work
Case Rate
AWC Reporters
All Manufacturing
Source: AWC Environment, Energy and Safety Survey;
U.S. Department of Labor
Capital Spending
As shown in Chart 10, the wood products industry spent $2.7 billion on plant
and equipment in 2012, according to Census Bureau data. That level of spending
represented a 67 percent increase relative to a recession-period spending low of
$1.6 billion in 2009. Only $0.5 billion of the industry’s 2012 capital expenditures
went for structures, while $2.2 billion was used for equipment.
CHART 10: Wood Products Industry Capital Spending
Billions of Dollars
5
4
ECONOMIC PROFILE
Production
3
2
1
After peaking in late 2005, production of wood products had dropped nearly 45 percent by mid-2009 due to declines in housing starts resulting from the financial crisis.
The subsequent recovery in new home construction has lifted demand for solid
wood products. U.S. production of wood products rebounded by 30 percent between its mid-2009 cyclical low point and the third quarter of 2014, according to
Federal Reserve Board data. However, as can be seen from Chart 9 below, wood
products production still remains significantly below its pre-recession levels.
Sales from wood products companies recently have also been on the rise, from a
low of $58 billion in 2009 to $71 billion in 2013, according to U.S. government data.
The wood products industry accounted for 1.2 percent of U.S. manufacturing GDP
in 2012, according to data compiled by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
CHART 9: Wood Products Industry Production and Housing Starts
120
110
100
90
60
50
40
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Industry Production (Index: 2007 = 100)
Housing Starts (Thousands)
Source: Federal Reserve Board, seasonally adjusted monthly data
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Employment
According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, wood products employment
bottomed out at 337,100 workers in 2012 and has been trending higher during
recent years as housing starts and industry production recover. Wood products industry employment rose 0.6 percent in 2012 and 3.8 percent in 2013, to
351,900. By mid-2014, it had increased to 370,000.
CHART 11: Wood Products Industry Employment
Thousands of Workers
600
500
2,000
400
1,500
300
1,000
200
500
100
0
2007
Source: Annual Capital Expenditures Survey, U.S. Census Bureau
2,500
80
70
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
REPORT
METHODOLOGY
2015 AWC MEMBERS
Almond Bros. Lumber
Anthony Forest Products
Boise Cascade
Canadian Wood Council
Canfor USA/New South
Charles Ingram Lumber
Collum’s Lumber
Columbia Vista
Deltic Timber
Georgia-Pacific
Gilman Building Products
Green Bay Packaging
Hampton Resources
Harrigan Lumber
High Cascade/WKO
Hood Industries
Hull-Oakes Lumber
Humboldt Redwood Company
H.W. Culp Lumber
Idaho Forest Group
Idaho Timber
Interfor U.S., Inc.
Interstate Resources
Kapstone Paper & Packaging
Lampe & Malphrus
LP
Masonite
McShan Lumber
Mendocino Forest Products
Mt. Hood Forest Products
MWV
Norbord
Plum Creek
Potlatch
Rex/North Florida
Roseburg Forest Products
Scotch Gulf Lumber
Seneca Sawmill Company
Shuqualak Lumber
Sierra Pacific
Simpson Lumber
Stimson Lumber
Swift Lumber
T.R. Miller Mill Company
Vaagen Brothers
West Fraser
Westervelt
Weyerhaeuser
The American Wood Council (AWC) is both
one of the youngest and one of the oldest
major trade groups in the nation. AWC was
re-chartered as a separate corporation in
June 2010, evolving from a number of predecessor groups. Immediately prior to the
founding of AWC, the wood products industry was represented by the American Forest
& Paper Association (AF&PA).
AWC member data for 2010 and 2012 are
from survey responses to AWC’s Environment and Energy Survey. For years prior to
2010, data is from a similar survey conducted
by AF&PA for its members with wood products operations. Note that the sample set of
respondents varies from one survey year to
another.
222 Catoctin Circle SE | Suite 201 | Leesburg, VA 20175
1101 K Street NW | Suite 700 | Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 463-2766 | Fax: (202) 463-2791
www.awc.org