Blind Spots in Climate Change Part 16: Is There Potential for Increasing Demand for New Wood-Based Materials?

Even though we know that tree planting is effective for climate change mitigation, it lacks appeal as a sustainable business, so it relies on people's charitable donations.

Expanding the demand for wood is essential for making tree planting more attractive as a business. This time, let's look at new materials made from wood.

✅ Cellulose Nanofibers and Modified Lignin

Once again, I will introduce information from the White Paper on Forest and Forestry.

Currently, the development of new biomass materials using the main components of wood as raw materials is progressing. New materials called Cellulose Nanofibers (CNF) and modified lignin are being developed into products that leverage their respective characteristics.

Think of lignin as the adhesive that holds the fibers in trees together. The table shows examples of products where CNF is already being used.

Fossil fuel-derived plastics have made our lives more convenient.

However, due to improper disposal, millions of tons of plastic waste flow from land into the ocean worldwide every year.

At this rate, it is said that by 2050, the amount of ocean plastic waste will exceed the amount of marine life.

Like the climate change issue, the ocean waste problem has led to a movement that resulted in charging for plastic shopping bags, as awareness of the issue was shared around the world.

Biomass materials can serve as alternatives to plastics and metals derived from fossil fuels, and they can also reduce the environmental burden during production and disposal compared to those materials.

CNF and modified lignin are expected to be developed into high-value-added products, and prototype vehicles using them for interior and exterior parts have already been announced.

Furthermore, modified lignin is expected to be a material that combines heat resistance and other functions with processability, as it is modified with polyethylene glycol, a highly safe material used as an ingredient in cosmetics and other products.

I hope that the value of trees will be re-evaluated in response to climate change, giving momentum to the development of new materials and also giving momentum to commercial tree planting, but it still lacks sufficient force.

✅ Let's each think about how to utilize wood!

Companies like McDonald's Japan have announced that they will switch to wooden construction and increase the use of wood for exteriors when opening new stores or renovating.

I hope that the movement to switch from materials with a high environmental burden to wood will become an opportunity to increase the use of wood for construction purposes, and that the development of materials like reinforced glued laminated timber will also progress.

I am also looking forward to the development of new materials made from wood.

Countries around the world will likely introduce the wood used in the New National Stadium, which serves as the main venue for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

And I, as an old man, am looking forward to that movement giving momentum to tree planting as a business.

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