Wood – A Scarce material? Towards a Hierarchy of Uses ; Le bois, un matériau rare ? Vers une hiérarchie des usages du bois

Open Access

Abstract

The ecological transition has begun. With the latest IPPC report, we can no longer ignore the need for an economy that preserves natural resources and relies less on energies and materials produced from fossil sources. Part I of the article analyses the implications for forests as a result of climate change and the dual need for adaptation and mitigation : the functions of forests in respect of atmospheric carbon are described as characterised by the « 3Ss » : storage, sequestration, substitution. The author briefly details the risks to which forests are exposed by climate change and calls for the development of adaptive forest management practises. A numerical analysis is given for the period 1980-2010 relating to the primary and secondary processing sector, showing that « France is on the way to underdevelopment ». Part II describes government policies in recent years, underlining the imbalance between support provided for energy uses and support for uses as a material. Several energy or biomass product development scenarios in France and in Europe to 2030 and 2050 are considered, showing the that forest biomass will increasingly be called on to provide chemical and renewable energy uses. Part III explores the dynamics in place for better integrating policy action and inter-trade action, in particular the establishment of an industry strategy committee, an increasingly concerted approach between ministries towards policy actions, and the new Industrial France Plan for the construction of high-rise buildings made of wood. This Plan is seen as an instrument for restoring a suitable hierarchy of wood uses, under which construction timber is developed so that competitive processing sectors are relocated to France, generating byproducts that would reduce the current competition between uses. ; La transition écologique commence ; avec le dernier rapport du GIEC, il n'est plus possible d'écarter la nécessité d'une économie plus respectueuse des ressources naturelles et moins dépendante des énergies et matériaux issus ...