IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/caa/jnljfs/v69y2023i10id65-2023-jfs.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Forest as a source of renewable material to reduce the environmental impact of buildings

Author

Listed:
  • Hana Svobodová

    (Department of Forest and Wood Product Economics and Policy, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic)

  • Petra Hlaváčková

    (Department of Forest and Wood Product Economics and Policy, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic)

Abstract

Construction sector has high environmental impact throughout entire life cycle of buildings. One way to reduce the impact is to use building materials with the lowest possible environmental impact - such as wood. The use of wood-based building materials can improve the overall environmental balance of buildings. Compared to other materials, wood probably has the best environmental performance. These findings are particularly significant in the context of the environmental and legislative situation in Europe and the Czech Republic and may be one of the reasons for the increasing number of new wood-based buildings. The main reason for the research is to highlight the potential of wood as an ecological renewable material with multiple applications in all sectors of the national economy, especially in the construction industry. This paper aims to deepen the knowledge of the environmental specifications of building materials, especially wood, highlight its benefits and verify that building with natural and eco-friendly materials is less costly with lower environmental impacts. To illustrate the environmental impact of the construction industry, a case study comparing house variants was conducted to find the most suitable combinations of materials in terms of economic, environmental, and social aspects. It was found that from a sustainable development perspective, building with green materials generally means lower environmental impacts measured by e.g. global warming potential and embodied energy. This is particularly evident in the case of wood, which is not only a renewable material with advantageous thermo-technical and construction properties despite its low weight, but also stores carbon as it grows. The findings show that wood in the structure can reduce the cumulative environmental impact of the whole structure.

Suggested Citation

  • Hana Svobodová & Petra Hlaváčková, 2023. "Forest as a source of renewable material to reduce the environmental impact of buildings," Journal of Forest Science, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 69(10), pages 451-462.
  • Handle: RePEc:caa:jnljfs:v:69:y:2023:i:10:id:65-2023-jfs
    DOI: 10.17221/65/2023-JFS
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://jfs.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/65/2023-JFS.html
    Download Restriction: free of charge

    File URL: http://jfs.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/65/2023-JFS.pdf
    Download Restriction: free of charge

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.17221/65/2023-JFS?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Aysin Sev, 2009. "How can the construction industry contribute to sustainable development? A conceptual framework," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(3), pages 161-173.
    2. Ying Liu & Haibo Guo & Cheng Sun & Wen-Shao Chang, 2016. "Assessing Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) as an Alternative Material for Mid-Rise Residential Buildings in Cold Regions in China—A Life-Cycle Assessment Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-13, October.
    3. Bon‐Gang Hwang & Jac See Tan, 2012. "Green building project management: obstacles and solutions for sustainable development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 20(5), pages 335-349, September.
    4. Seyed Meysam Khoshnava & Raheleh Rostami & Rosli Mohamad Zin & Dalia Štreimikienė & Abbas Mardani & Mohammad Ismail, 2020. "The Role of Green Building Materials in Reducing Environmental and Human Health Impacts," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-22, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hai Pham & Soo-Yong Kim & Truong-Van Luu, 2020. "Managerial perceptions on barriers to sustainable construction in developing countries: Vietnam case," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 2979-3003, April.
    2. Sadaf Dalirazar & Zahra Sabzi, 2022. "Barriers to sustainable development: Critical social factors influencing the sustainable building development based on Swedish experts' perspectives," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(6), pages 1963-1974, December.
    3. Pierluigi Morano & Francesco Tajani & Felicia Di Liddo & Paola Amoruso, 2024. "A Feasibility Analysis of Energy Retrofit Initiatives Aimed at the Existing Property Assets Decarbonisation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-19, April.
    4. Muhammad Altaf & Wesam Salah Alaloul & Muhammad Ali Musarat & Abdul Hannan Qureshi, 2023. "Life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) of construction projects: sustainability perspective," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(11), pages 12071-12118, November.
    5. Hui-Ching Hsieh & Viona Claresta & Thi Minh Ngoc Bui, 2020. "Green Building, Cost of Equity Capital and Corporate Governance: Evidence from US Real Estate Investment Trusts," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-21, May.
    6. Chen, Liming & Zhao, Yuanyuan & Xie, Rui & Su, Bin & Liu, Yue & Renfei, Xv, 2023. "Embodied energy intensity of global high energy consumption industries: A case study of the construction industry," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 277(C).
    7. Kjell Mårtensson & Karin Westerberg, 2016. "Corporate Environmental Strategies Towards Sustainable Development," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 1-9, January.
    8. María Pilar de la Cruz López & Juan José Cartelle Barros & Alfredo del Caño Gochi & Manuel Lara Coira, 2021. "New Approach for Managing Sustainability in Projects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-27, June.
    9. Wei Wang & Shoujian Zhang & Yikun Su & Xinyang Deng, 2019. "An Empirical Analysis of the Factors Affecting the Adoption and Diffusion of GBTS in the Construction Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-24, March.
    10. Peidong Sang & Jinjian Liu & Lin Zhang & Lingqiao Zheng & Haona Yao & Yanjie Wang, 2018. "Effects of Project Manager Competency on Green Construction Performance: The Chinese Context," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-17, September.
    11. Md. Arif Chowdhury & Hasnat Sabrina & Rashed Uz Zzaman & Syed Labib Ul Islam, 2022. "Green building aspects in Bangladesh: A study based on experts opinion regarding climate change," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(7), pages 9260-9284, July.
    12. Gabriel Felmer & Rodrigo Morales-Vera & Rodrigo Astroza & Ignacio González & Maureen Puettmann & Mark Wishnie, 2022. "A Lifecycle Assessment of a Low-Energy Mass-Timber Building and Mainstream Concrete Alternative in Central Chile," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-19, January.
    13. Jin Kook Yang & Le Dinh Thuc & Pham Phu Cuong & Nguyen Van Du & Huu‐Bang Tran, 2023. "Evaluating a driving index of nonresidential green building implementation for sustainable development in developing countries from a Vietnamese perspective," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(3), pages 1720-1734, June.
    14. Xue Xiao & Martin Skitmore & Heng Li & Bo Xia, 2019. "Mapping Knowledge in the Economic Areas of Green Building Using Scientometric Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-22, August.
    15. Yuki Fuchigami & Keisuke Kojiro & Yuzo Furuta, 2020. "Quantification of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Wood-Plastic Recycled Composite (WPRC) and Verification of the Effect of Reducing Emissions through Multiple Recycling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-13, March.
    16. Li, Qianwen & Qian, Tingyu & Zhang, Xufeng & Long, Ruyin & Chen, Hong & Huang, Han & Liu, Lei & Zhu, Licai & Jiang, Huikang & Zhu, Hanyi, 2023. "How does stakeholder loss aversion affect the promotion of green housing?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 647-668.
    17. Raikhan Beisenova & Kamshat Tussupova & Rumiya Tazitdinova & Symbat Tulegenova & Zhanar Rakhymzhan & Ainur Orkeyeva & Yerkenaz Alkhanova & Anar Myrzagaliyeva & Askar Nugmanov & Aktoty Zhupysheva, 2024. "Perceived and Physical Quality of Drinking Water in Pavlodar and Akmola Rural Regions of Kazakhstan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-30, September.
    18. Zhao, Dong-Xue & He, Bao-Jie & Johnson, Christine & Mou, Ben, 2015. "Social problems of green buildings: From the humanistic needs to social acceptance," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1594-1609.
    19. Roohollah Taherkhani, 2024. "Barriers to green building implementation in developing countries: the case of Iran," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(11), pages 28389-28421, November.
    20. Haibo Guo & Ying Liu & Yiping Meng & Haoyu Huang & Cheng Sun & Yu Shao, 2017. "A Comparison of the Energy Saving and Carbon Reduction Performance between Reinforced Concrete and Cross-Laminated Timber Structures in Residential Buildings in the Severe Cold Region of China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-15, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:caa:jnljfs:v:69:y:2023:i:10:id:65-2023-jfs. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Ivo Andrle (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.cazv.cz/en/home/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.