ESCANABA — Wood is the most environmentally friendly raw material at our disposal. The legacy of human wood use is rich and the future is bright. But is it a panacea?

Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that most people will agree that wood is a sustainable and renewable resource; and has a small footprint measured against carbon emissions, energy use, and produces a variety of environmental benefits. Okay.

To use wood, or any other resource, an inventory can start the process and add to decision-making. So, how much wood does Michigan have? A lot! However, let’s also state at the outset that there isn’t enough wood to solve all our problems, and just because it’s there doesn’t mean it might enter the market. Yet, it’s a good material, better than anything else. We should use it when we can.

Trees and forests have been counted and measured for over 75 years. Michigan has thousands of inventory plots, not as many as we should (legislative decision), as in Wisconsin, but enough to make statewide conditions reasonably clear.

Total Michigan forest volume is called “standing timber”. The changes in volume are due to growth, natural mortality, and harvesting. Volume has been accumulating for decades. As a side note, forest area remains on the increase, meaning there is no “net” deforestation, an important tidbit to remember. Also note, that there are different definitions for related terms, so that database searches might be more meaningful for a variety of users. It can also sometimes be somewhat confusing.

One of the upshots of looking at statewide conditions is that we lose more wood volume to natural mortality than we harvest, although that is not uniform across the state. Natural mortality claims more than a half-million logging trucks worth of wood each year. That suggests that a portion of that mortality might be put to better use, for heating and cooling, for example. Anytime we can displace fossil fuel consumption, we win. Keeping forests younger and more vigorous helps with the carbon picture.

The volume of trees dying from natural causes has been creeping upward over the decades, so has volume lost in live trees from diseases, which is what an ecologist would expect from an aging forest, which is what we have. Simply looking at the inventory, and then utilizing just half the current mortality volume (before it dies), Michigan could sustainably float another three monster wood mills, or a wide host of smaller ones.

Some might argue that a large mill has certain efficiencies, an economy of scale, more eggs in one basket, perhaps easier to regulate. Wood must be delivered from a “woodshed” over a hundred miles across, and fewer raw wood products would likely meet mill requirements. Big mills are good things.

On the other hand, many smaller mills may be more economically stable and are more diverse in the blend of raw wood feedstocks. A balance of markets means a broader variety of raw wood products can be sold, which in turn, means a better prospect for improving forest management and maintaining forest health.

In terms of wood for advanced heating and cooling systems (biomass thermal energy), local facilities make far more sense, and keep dollars local. The demand is steady, as winter comes every year. So does summer cooling, prompting many applications. Additionally, wood prices tend to be more stable than fossil fuel prices and are not impacted by world events. And, wood is uniquely renewable.

Looking to the future, wood holds immense promise in what can be produced, especially capturing wood carbon and producing chemicals. One of the nice things about wood carbon is that it’s part of the natural carbon cycle, unlike fossil carbon. The list of useful products is currently amazing, over 5000 things. That number could jump dramatically if some of the potential uses could be commercialized.

Imagine if plastic bottles were made of wood rather than petroleum? Or, if comfy clothing from wood replaced that of cotton and petroleum? Engineered wood has become a reality and will likely replace much of the steel and concrete materials. The potential goes on.

When we think of renewable wood products and the future, it all starts in the forest, with an inventory, with good management, and good harvesting practices, both of which are world-class in the Lake States. Our Michigan inventory, which is similar across the region, shows that we have some wiggle-room for utilization expansion. But before we get too excited, having the inventory doesn’t mean owners will sell it, or that it is otherwise available.

Nearly half of Michigan’s forest, both volume and area, is owned by families and other non-corporate interests, over 180,000 parcels of at least ten acres. And then, there are certain public forests where harvest is prohibited or at least discouraged or, perhaps, under-harvested.

As it turns out, wood use is at least as much a social decision as a financial and environmental decision. Wood is good. But not everyone agrees.