Energy efficiency is one of the cornerstones of green building: roughly 40%-50% of North America’s carbon emissions are attributed to buildings and nearly all of that is the energy they consume.
Wood buildings can require less energy to construct and operate over time. Through research and development, the wood industry continues to develop building systems that offer greater air tightness, less conductivity and more thermal mass – including prefabricated systems that contribute to the low energy requirements of Passive House and Net Zero designs.
Wood is more efficient than steel and concrete in the amount of energy used in processing, manufacturing and transporting to the worksite (the embodied energy). Plus, wood is completely renewable and recyclable.