Wood Industry Issues Heat Up in July
Ready or Not, Controversial Product Safety Website Goes Live
From the $6 million fine levied against Imperial Sugar to the release of a global study on illegal logging and from President Obama’s signing of a formaldehyde standard to the EPA being sued over its lead rule, I can’t recall a month in my 25 years in which so many industry issues made headlines as we witnessed in July.

All of these and other major news reports were published last month on WoodworkingNetwork.com’s Update enewsletter. Here’s a quick recap for those who might have missed one or more of these important stories, presented in the order they were posted online.

Imperial Sugar agreed to pay slightly more than $6 million in fines stemming from the February 2008 combustible dust explosion that killed 14 and critically injured 36 others at its Port Wentworth, GA, plant. In settling with OSHA, Imperial Sugar admitted to no wrong-doing, while also excepting OSHA’s terms to implement unprecedented housekeeping, monitoring, reporting and training programs, as well as hire independent consultants to conduct regular safety audits at its two plants. It remains to be seen how these mandates might influence OSHA’s combustible dust standard.

President Barak Obama signed the industry-backed Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, which sets formaldehyde emissions from particleboard, MDF and hardwood plywood consistent with those established by the California Air Resources Board.

The National Association of Home Builders, joined by three other housing-related trade associations, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s controversial Lead: Repair, Renovation and Paint rule. While the associations were grateful that EPA had earlier decided to give professional remodelers and contractors up to Dec. 31 to comply, NAHB said EPA should not have removed the “opt-out” clause that potentially could have excluded nearly 40 million homes built before 1978 that do not house children under 6.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission voted 5-0 to approve proposed mandatory standards that would effectively prohibit the sale and resale of drop-side cribs. CPSC staff has been directed to finalize a modified version of the voluntary ASTM F 1169-10 standard by the end of the year. Nearly 10 million cribs, mostly drop-side models, have been recalled since 2005.

The European Union Parliament voted 644-25 to outlaw the import and sale of illegal logs and wood products. The European legislation, comes two years after the United States amended the Lacey Act to include bans on illegally imported wood and wood products. Like the Lacey Act, the EU is looking to eliminate a market for illegally sourced wood products by creating sanctions for importers, distributors and retailers.

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative announced that 79 members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed a letter requesting the U.S. Green Building Council to end Forest Stewardship Council’s exclusivity of LEED credits for certified wood. The Congressmen urged USGBC to also recognize SFI, PEFC, CSA, ATFS and other “creditable” certification systems. If USGBC relents, wood products firms will have far greater options to gain LEED credits on their projects.

London-based Chatham House
released the results of its 2-1/2-year study, “Illegal Logging and Related Trade: Indicators of the Global Response.” According to the report, total global production of illegal timber has fallen by 22 percent since 2002 due to enforcement efforts by tropical forest nations, media attention and new laws like the amended Lacey Act.

Woodworking Network will continue to stay on top of these and other issues that impact the wood products industry.

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