Behind the beams hides the sustainable forest

Last October, the Landais Alzheimer Village received the PEFC Construction Bois label. Recognition of the Department's commitment to sustainable forest management.

The Landais Alzheimer Village is only the third building in France to obtain PEFC certification, and the first for a site of this size. The Village's wood share represents 14% of the total construction value and will have consumed 650 m3 - exclusively maritime pine - from the Landes sawmills of Labadie and Lesbats. The Village's PEFC label was awarded following an audit carried out by QUALISUD, an independent organization. “It certifies the traceability of wood, from tree to plank,” explains Thierry Cazeaux, forestry project manager in the Landes department, “for the consumer, it is a guarantee of the quality of the wood and of the production chain production, a bit like the Label Rouge for chickens”.

A very precise specification

The maritime pine used for the work was taken from a forest whose regular renewal is ensured by natural regeneration and / or planting. The diversity of species is favored there, GMOs, fertilizers and other phytosanitary products are obviously prohibited. The owner also undertakes to preserve the soil, flora, fauna, habitats and wetlands.

At the time of felling, the company of Eddy Cornaggia, supplier to the Labadie sawmill, had to comply with extremely detailed specifications: "we must respect the condition of the roads and the land, use non-combustible pollutants, be careful not to damage neighboring trees, avoid cutting near water courses, etc." In the next step, at the sawmill, Philippe Labadie's establishment in Roquefort was audited "in order to verify the consistency between the volume of wood purchased and that marketed under the PEFC label".

A role of ambassador

The Landes Alzheimer Village site is an example of the Department's commitment to sustainable management of the timber industry. The Xylomat 2 building, which should be built soon on the Agrolandes technopole in Haut-Mauco, will follow PEFC standards. The forests of the departmental domain of Ognoas are labeled, as is the printing house of the Hôtel du Département which uses certified sustainable management paper for its publications.

Dominique Degos, vice-president of the Departmental Council in charge of Agriculture and Forests, sits on the Board of Directors of PEFC France as representative of the Assembly of Departments of France. It thus ensures the link between the national structure of the PEFC and the referents of the wood sector in each of the departments: "the idea is to find in each department the appropriate interlocutor to plead the cause of sustainable management in future public constructions."

The basis of the PEFC label is to guarantee a balance between the various environmental, social and economic functions of the forest. There is a reluctance, especially among the younger generations, towards the production of forest resources. Thierry Cazeaux defends reasoned exploitation: “An aging forest loses its potential for capturing CO2. When we keep it in production, we harvest timber, we store beams, furniture, timber, and that's the amount of carbon that has been held captive for decades."

From his sawmill in Roquefort, Philippe Labadie observes a change in mentality: “Public authorities and large factories are very demanding in terms of certification. This remains less common among craftsmen and individuals. But the notion of valuing the local resource is progressing, judging by the increasing demands of architects.”

PEFC certification in figures

In France, more than 70,000 forest owners and more than 3,000 companies in the forest-wood-paper sector have chosen PEFC certification.

With 5.5 million hectares certified in metropolitan France and 2.4 million in Guyana, the PEFC label covers 100% of state forest, 60% of municipal forest and nearly 20% of private forest.

In Nouvelle-Aquitaine, more than 25,000 owners are members, which represents approximately 1.1 million hectares.

Official website : pefc-france.org

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