industry issues made headlines as we witnessed in July. From the $6 million fine levied against Imperial Sugar for ComDust violations to the release of a global study on illegal logging and from President Obama’s signing of a national formaldehyde standard to the EPA being sued over its lead paint rule, I can’t recall a month in my 25 years in which so many important

All of these and other major news reports were published last month on WoodworkingNetwork.com and delivered to the approximately 35,000 subscribers of the Woodworking Network 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 unprecented 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 some of these mandates might influence OSHA’s combustible dust standard that will target many industries, including wood products. Read the story.

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. Calling the legislation historic, Tom Julia, president of the Composite Panel Association, said, “The legislation represents a responsible, bipartisan approach to advancing consumer protection, fair trade, and domestic jobs.” Read the story.

The National Association of Home Builders, joined by three other housing-related trade associations, announced it had 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 years old. Read the story.

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, most of them drop-side models, have been recalled in the U.S. and Canada in the past five years. Read the story.

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 that participate in illegal activity, even if done so unwittily. Read the story.

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” wood certification systems. SFI also sent USGBC a petition signed by more than 6,000 people making a similar request. If USGBC relents, wood products companies will have far greater options to gain LEED credits on their projects. Read the story.

 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 to the problem and new laws like the amended Lacey Act. Read the story.

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


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