One of the reports provides guidelines on feedstock specifications for 20 current and emerging recycled wood applications. The other report represents the third and final WRAP study aiming to address the historical problem of a lack of statistics and information on wood waste flows in the UK.
Both reports will be considered further by WRAP in order to help the market development agency develop its wood programme.
Tom Fourcade, WRAP's material sector manager for wood, said: “These new WRAP publications provide a comprehensive source of technical information and market analysis to assist the industry in making the most of the commercial opportunities that exist. The WRAP wood programme will continue to build information resources for the industry and other interested parties, as a key component of its strategy to accelerate growth in wood waste recycling.”
Feedstock
The first report, Identification of Feedstock Specifications for UK Wood Recycling Applications and Examples of Good Practice in their Achievement, was produced on behalf of WRAP by constancy firm Urban Harvest Ltd. It assessed the few formal specifications that already exist in the wood waste sector and consulted with over 50 wood recyclers and users of recycled wood to identify feedstock requirements for a range of applications.
The report aims to raise awareness among reprocessors with explanations of how wood waste is processed into products and how product performance can be affected by the quality of the raw materials. Guidance is given on controlling quality when sourcing wood waste as well as during the processing and storage stages.
Mr Fourcade said: “The ability of wood recyclers to achieve high technical standards and adapt to the demands of ever evolving markets for recycled wood products will be a key success factor in the future.”
Wood Flows
The other major report, A Study of UK Wood Flows and Recycled Waste Wood Markets, presents the findings of research carried out by TRADA Technology Ltd to quantify and characterise wood waste flows in the UK and assess potential applications and end markets for the waste wood.
The study found that while over 2 million tonnes of wood waste is generated in the UK every year by the timber-using industries, little importance has been attached to measuring this waste stream. This lack of data has contributed to the “widespread ignorance” concerning the value of waste wood as a resource, and has “helped to obscure the vast amount of waste wood sent to landfill every year”, WRAP said.
Both of these reports are available on the WRAP website.
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