Environmentally responsible construction: Community wood recycling
In This Series
- Assessment of the durability and engineering properties of lesser-known hardwood timber species for use in marine and freshwater construction
- Avoiding landfill through effective wood waste disposal and a shift in product focus
- Bracing for non-domestic timber trussed rafter roofs
- Cross-laminated timber: an introduction
- GD 5 How to calculate deformations in timber structures using Eurocodes

This research information sheet examines how businesses can adopt a more environmentally responsible approach to building.
This research information sheet features Integra (Brighton) Ltd as a case study for community wood recycling.
Integra was established in 1990 with a goal of servicing the construction needs of Sussex and the South East of England with a focus on environmental and social responsibility. In just five years after its inception, Integra diverted over 400 tonnes of wood waste from landfill for recycling and re-use.
Contents:
- The achievement
- Background
- Working with local timber recyclers
- The wood waste problem
- Table 1: Integral wood waste disposal figures
- Table 2: Cheesmur building contractors wood waste disposal figures
Suggested Reading
Introducing wood
As a construction material, timber has a very distinct advantage over the alternatives, namely that it is a living thing and therefore a renewable resource. With the use of correctly managed forests, timber represents an excellent way of creating a more sustainable construction industry.
The treatment of timber...
08/06/2020 | Wood Information Sheet
Recovering and minimising waste wood
Wood and wood-based products are used in a wide range of applications, some with service lives of many decades before they enter the waste stream. However, it is only since the mid-1990s that an industry has emerged to recycle waste wood, where qualities such as a low moisture content compared...
13/05/2020 | Wood Information Sheet
Burning issues
TRADA Technology wood waste experts Miles Brown, Dr Andrew Pitman and Dr Vic Kearley provide a summary of the information contained in TRADA's recent Construction Briefings on wood as biomass.
Article from the TRADA Timber Industry Yearbook 2012
01/01/2012 | Magazine Article