Every cubic meter of wood extracted from the Amazon and prepared for use in construction releases between 6.5 and 24.9 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), from the time the trees are cut down until their final transportation to the market in the former of boards, panels and other timber products. These estimates were reached through research conducted by architect Érica Ferraz de Campos, from the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo. Her research took into account both legal and illegal logging, and was based on data gathered from the literature and from logging companies.

“Every hectare of forest contains between 200 and 425 tons of dry biomass, which store between 98 and 208 tons of carbon. When the trees are removed this carbon is released. In addition, the processing of the wood and the burning of fossil fuels, particularly during transportation, also produce CO2 emissions,” Ferraz de Campos told Tierramérica.