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Pennsylvania has some of the best hardwoods in the world. We are extremely fortunate to live and operate in the beautiful Allegheny Plateau in the Northern Appalachian Mountain Range. This area is known worldwide for its high-quality oak and cherry. Hickman Lumber sources trees within 100 miles of our sawmill in Emlenton, PA.
Wood is good because it’s renewable! Our Allegheny Mountain hardwood flooring process is 100% FSC Certified with 100% tree utilization from the forest to the floor.
The Biggest Threat to Pennsylvania Hardwood Forests in Underutilization!
A 2010 UN report states a troublesome issue: “…there is growing concern that the US hardwood resource is now being severely underutilized.” If the demand for North American timber decreases, the value of timber decreases and can cause landowners to convert their land from forests to farms or development sites.
Wood is the only renewable building material. Pennsylvania has plenty of trees and our FSC process ensures 100% of the tree is utilized in production from the forest to floor.
First of all, people need to realize that using products sourced from hardwoods helps fight climate change. We all know that trees sequester and store carbon, and this is very important, but many people do not know that if that tree is harvested and milled into lumber, that lumber continues to store carbon for the life of the product.
All trees eventually die. The life of a hardwood tree in a Pennsylvania forest varies, but the average is around 100 -150 years old. When a tree dies naturally in the forest, the carbon sequestered is released back into the atmosphere.
Currently, Pennsylvania has a lot of old trees due to clear cuts after the civil war. Therefore, trees are dying faster than we are harvesting them. Old trees indeed store a lot of carbon, but they are not sequestering them at a fast rate. Younger trees sequester carbon faster. (see graph).
When you harvest a mature tree and create real wood products for flooring, cabinets, and furniture that last for generations will reduce the overall volume of “goods” in the economy. This will reduce the number of plastics and other low-quality products ending up in landfills and create healthier forests!
Using wood products is truly a win for your home, a win for the local forest, and a win for the planet.
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