Certifier Now Favors Steel

Dr. Stanley Rhodes, president of Scientific Certification Systems, once a timber industry proponent, now claims that steel is a more sustainable resource than wood.

He contends that "timber comes off second best to iron ore extraction because vastly greater areas of operation are involved in the former."

"For a given amount of iron ore extracted and used," Rhodes continues, "the steel produced can be continuously reclaimed and recycled without significant loss. This, of course, stands in clear contrast to wood."

In response, Con Schallau, chief economist, American Forest & Paper Association, noted that:

. By the time significant amounts of steel are eventually recycled from demolished or modified homes, the rate for recycling framing lumber will likely be the same.

Although forests are regenerated, an exhausted deposit of iron ore cannot be replaced.

. Although considerable steel framing does come from recycled steel, ore-derived, virgin steel is still needed.

Extraction and processing of iron ore requires significantly more energy than lumber production.

Yet, Rhodes claims, "as long as the debate centers around whether a given resource is renewable or not. it will be