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Environmental Impact of Cedar Shake and Shingle
Manufacture
It is commonly believed that trees are
cut down to make shakes and shingles, but really they are not.
All shake and shingle manufacture is
typically salvage work, using waste products from logging
or natural processes to make these products. It is really one of the oldest methods of
recycling, an
important part of getting the most out of resources,
minimizing waste and fulfilling the needs of people for
housing in an economically and environmentally responsible way.
As part of the licensing agreement and
permit process salvagers are bound to agreements
with the BC
They are not allowed to use or damage
any living tree, even if it is fallen already by natural
processes of erosion or age.
Special permits must be obtained to
salvage trees which have fallen so recently
that they might have bark or branches still
attached, but are rarely given for
standing trees.
The revenue generated by logging is so much higher that they are
reserved for this purpose.
Occasionally standing trees which were
burned by wildfire, but still standing, and in
such small quantities that it is not
profitable for logging are taken for salvage, after many
permits and inspections are obtained.
I have spent many years in the bush
cutting cedar, and many times I have cut trees
which were burned in fires, blown over by
wind and sat on the ground for at least 400
years before I salvaged wood from them.
Sometimes they would have a tree 6 to 8
feet in diameter growing on top of them,
then fallers remove this overgrowth and
harvest this “newer” growth, replant the area
and have another 60 years of regeneration, logged a second
time for these smaller 1 to 2
foot diameter trees, and then I come in and
clean up the charred hulk which lies under
centuries of residue, logging debris and waste.
In an effort to reduce waste some districts
will allow salvage crews to cut before logging, but even in
this instance they are restricted to dead and down trees,
never cutting standing or live trees.
The purpose is to remove as much of the salvageable material before it is damaged by logging.
Falling trees can land on the dead ones on the ground, destroying them so they are not useable
by anyone, loggers or salvage crews.
Some other rules apply universally, no
salvage is permitted in fisheries sensitive zones, where
it might be detrimental to slope stability or where there
is any concern of impact to any wildlife,
either directly or as a result of habitat
loss. For example, hollowed logs used
for bear dens
are not allowed to be cut.
The company I work for is ISO and
planning to minimize the impact on the environment.
All of the freshly logged areas where cedar is salvaged, though the shake block cutting crews may or may not be
certified, all of the primary contractors, the logging companies that cut the area, must be certified and have a sustainable
harvest. The logging companies that cut the trees down must replant the area and insure it grows to replace the
trees which were removed, and that the rate of harvest and replanting are sustainable.
The shake and shingle crews must adhere to the same rules, and most times more stringent rules than the logging crews.
For example, a stream with a rooted width of less than 0.5m, with more than 35% slope for more than 500m, with no
stepped pools and no fish present in at least four inspections at different times of year, and surveyed with no fish present
for a minimum of 500m above the section in question is classified as an S6, the logging crews are allowed to cut trees right
in the stream, fall them into it, yard through it and leave huge piles of limbs and debris in it, so much that the stream is inaccessible,
completely buried under mounds of wood.
The shake and shingle crews are not allowed to go near it for fear they might damage fish habitat.
Dozens of times I have left Cedar logs, fell and yarded by logging crews and placed in a creek, because I can't cut it legally.
I have cut them there, but not as a shake and shingle salvage crew, but as a part of habitat restoration work for a Salmon
Enhancement Society, with all of the permits from MOE and DFO, of course.
I have also worked as a Fisheries Guardian
for the Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans, a fisheries consultant for
Helifor and Macmillan Bloedel,
a fisheries technician for North Vancouver Island Salmon Enhancement
Association and
Broughton Archipelago Salmon Enhancement,
and as a volunteer at most of the hatcheries on or near
receiving the Premieres Award for volunteer
service in salmon enhancement.
I take my responsibility to preserve the
environment very seriously, as do all of my coworkers, and every one of us
go beyond social or legal requirements to do our best to keep it pristine.
Some websites which compare different roofing products state that it is not durable, and that it is not sustainably harvested,
but make no mention at all of the sustainability or environmental impact of other products.
Whether this is from lack of knowledge on the subject or deliberate misinformation is unclear, but the opinions they state
seem to be based on the poorest performance of the worst species of wood available, (White Cedar) and not considering
the species better suited (and more commonly used) for roofing.
Nor is the environmental impact of other roofing products even mentioned! They also do not give consideration to the way
Cedar is harvested, the fact that it is not a primary industry, but reclaiming of resources left from natural disaster, or as a
secondary industry, recycling waste from logging or development.
The facts, though, are that wood is the only renewable resource used for roofing, it is the only sustainably harvested roofing
product, and the only one which can actually have benefits for the environment. It is also very durable if manufactured to
industry standards, and performs as good or better than any other material in any criteria, whether thermal insulation, sound
proofing, weight, reflectivity, durability or aesthetics.
This has additional benefits for the environment, because it reduces power consumption for heating by woods great thermal
insulation characteristics, it reduces the consumption of building materials, because it is light weight compared to products
with similar longevity and requires less support structure, reduces cooling costs in the summer because of its reflectivity, reduces moisture and mold or mildew because it is the only
breathable roofing product.
For those who care about the environment, the irony of it all is that the best way to save the environment is to use wood products for roofing.
Any questions or comments can be sent to
Vancouver Island Shingle by clicking on the picture below.
