natureplus criticises ÖKO-TEST magazine's assessment of roof insulation materials
Published
In its August issue, ÖKO-TEST magazine evaluated 15 different roof insulation materials, including 5 with the natureplus seal of approval. The products are mainly suitable for insulation between rafters. The good performance of conventional products made of glass and rock wool, which all achieved "good", was striking. Of the natureplus-certified products, 2 insulation materials made of wood fibres - "Gutex Thermoflex" and "Pavaflex" by Pavatex - achieved the best rating in the test with "very good", while other products only scored "satisfactory" ("Isocell" cellulose fibre, "Thermo-Jute" by Thermo Natur) or "sufficient" (Ziro "Corktherm 040").
ECO criteria do not play a role However, natureplus Managing Director Thomas Schmitz finds the prioritisation of ÖKO-TEST "questionable". He criticises that the topic of manufacturing energy played no role whatsoever in the test. The use of renewable resources (renewable raw materials or recycled materials) also had no influence on the rating. "This does not fit in with the theme of ÖKO-Test," says Schmitz. The natureplus-tested products, on the other hand, all met high standards in these evaluation criteria, which were not taken into account by ÖKO-TEST.
"The raw material wood is precious. It is therefore important to use it responsibly and in a way that conserves resources," warns Peter Aicher, Chairman of Holzbau Deutschland. Even if wood is affected by environmental influences or the bark beetle, it does not represent an inferior raw material, but has almost identical properties to conventional construction timber. "If the so-called 'calamity wood' has the same structural quality in terms of load-bearing capacity as conventional sawn timber, it can be used without restrictions," explains Aicher. In addition, the wood retains its important function as a CO2 sink, regardless of external impairments.
"If the wood is used as a building material, the carbon bound in the wood remains stored there in the long term, thereby significantly reducing the burden on the environment."
The goal must be an economically and ecologically sensible and efficient use of the domestic resource. In the interests of sustainability and climate protection, regional wood resources should therefore be used optimally.
Calamity wood is of high quality and can be used without restrictions
In most cases, bark beetle infestation is irrelevant for the use of the wood as a building material. The bark beetle lays its burrows in the bast, i.e. the area between the bark (bark) and the trunk, but not in the load-bearing wood itself. In addition, the sawn timber is technically dried during further processing. During this process at the latest, any remaining populations of insect pests are reliably killed off, so that beetle-free timber processed into sawn timber is guaranteed to be beetle-free. Every piece of sawn timber - regardless of its origin - must meet the criteria of DIN standard 4074 in order to be used as load-bearing timber in a building. In some cases, the wood turns a slightly bluish colour after a bark beetle infestation. It can then be used in the non-visible area.
Environmental factors and the effects of climate change have further facilitated the mass spread of the bark beetle in the past year. In most cases, rapid felling of the affected trees is the only alternative to stop the further spread of the pest. The logs are immediately removed from the forest and stored. This results in an oversupply of so-called 'beetle wood'. The prompt further processing of the calamity wood into sawn timber is an active contribution to climate protection.
Holzbau Deutschland appeals to the public sector as well as to architects and builders to make greater use of regional calamity wood and to specify this in tenders. The use of domestic calamity wood not only supports regional value creation, but is also a sign of solidarity with regional forest owners.
In a second, somewhat more extensive update of the sdg21 web database, there were these innovations:
- the Home page was completely revised
- many new projects and Photo galleries
- the Europe projects reorganised
- FNB blog on the sdg21 website at blog.sdg21.eu moved
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121 flats on 12,500 m² of floor space and a further 3,500 m² of commercial space are currently being built in London, Dalston Lane. This is currently the largest solid timber building in the world. 3,500 m³ of cross-laminated timber are being used across nine storeys. Architect: Andrew Waugh.
From 2022, all new public buildings must consist of at least 50 percent wood or other sustainable building material. For buildings with more than eight storeys, the supporting structure must even be made entirely of wood.
It was also decided that 90 ecological neighbourhoods and 100 urban farms should be created in Paris.
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In its August issue, ÖKO-TEST magazine evaluated 15 different roof insulation materials, including 5 with the natureplus seal of approval. The products are mainly suitable for insulation between rafters. The good performance of conventional products made of glass and rock wool, which all achieved "good", was striking. Of the natureplus-certified products, 2 insulation materials made of wood fibres - "Gutex Thermoflex" and "Pavaflex" by Pavatex - achieved the best rating in the test with "very good", while other products only scored "satisfactory" ("Isocell" cellulose fibre, "Thermo-Jute" by Thermo Natur) or "sufficient" (Ziro "Corktherm 040").
