Barb's Blog

How Many Trees Will You Use Today?

I spotted this blog on Finch Papers - thought it was worth sharing!  

Barb

Introducing Erin O’Neill: With this week’s post, Finch forester Erin O’Neill joins Roger Dziengeleski as a contributor to the Finch in the Forest blog. Erin joined Finch in 2000 after earning a dual Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Resource Management and Wildlife Biology from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

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As a forester for a paper company, I’m often asked how much paper we can make from one tree.

My answer? It depends. Here’s why:

First, it’s not often that one entire tree is used for paper. Most trees are harvested for multiple products, with the highest-quality portions going into furniture and building materials that bring the highest price to the landowner. Paper is made from the lower-quality wood (“pulpwood”) that is left over.

Second, the initial step in preparing logs for pulping is to remove the bark. Depending on the type of tree, bark can account for 10-20 percent of a tree’s volume. (Paper manufacturers don’t throw the bark away; we either burn it to produce biomass energy or sell it for mulch).

Third, different types of trees provide different quantities of pulp. This varies by species (hardwood, softwood and aspen) and subspecies (for example, red pine, jack pine or white pine).

Fourth, different types of paper — tissue, book, digital — require different volumes or densities of pulp. Even within grades, there are different weights of paper, which require more or less wood fiber.

So, how can you equate paper or other forest products to raw wood? Let’s use the unit of pulpwood measurement called a “cord.” This refers to a stack of logs four feet tall, four feet deep and eight feet long, and typically weighing a total of 2.5 tons.

The average cord of wood could produce either:

•  1,000-2,000 pounds of paper, depending on grade

•  12 eight-seat dining room table sets

•  250 copies of the Sunday New York Times

•  4,000 half-gallon milk cartons

•  4.3 million postage stamps, or

•  7.5 million toothpicks

For additional perspective, building an 1,800-square-foot home requires the equivalent of about 20 cords of wood.

I hope you’ll agree that these statistics point out the incredible diversity of trees, the importance they hold in our society — and just how fortunate we are to have this incredible, renewable resource available to us. Americans have been utilizing vast quantities of wood for more than 200 years, and thanks to sustainable forest management, our forests remain plentiful and healthy, providing wood for forest products, habitat for wildlife, and lands for recreation, all while pulling greenhouse gases from our air. As the Society of American Foresters says, “Trees are the answer!”

Finch Paper LLCOne Glen Street
Glens Falls, NY 12801

1-800-833-9983

info@finchpaper.com