Small Diameter Pole Utilization

Sustainably Revitalizing A Local Industry Through Forest Restoration

Traditional Uses & Emerging Markets

Materials thinned for forest restoration have multiple advantages of fire prevention, forest health, bio-mass for renewable green energy, and economic development.

Small poles have been used as the framework for housing and shelter for millennia in forested areas around the world. In the early years of California’s milled lumber sourced from old growth trees, the growth rings were compact and many providing superior strength and structure.

The quality of lumber found in retail stores is compromised in the wake of clear-cut forestry and as a result of logging fast growing trees with looser growth rings. It’s thought that an abundance of that high quality wood is a thing of the past. But the small suppressed-growth trees thinned from forest improvement projects are tight-ringed and fibers run the length of the timber, mimicking the structural integrity of old growth redwood.

Working with round wood offers a reduced need for dimensional milling.

Round pole timber frames are compatible with fire-resistant cob and other earthen infill and clay plasters in compliance with CalFire’s Wildland Urban Interface building standards. Combine this with the fact that these materials are an abundant byproduct of restorative forestry management makes for a smart, fire resilient, locally sourced and sustainable alternative to dimensional lumber.

Jobs

The solution to reducing catastrophic fire fuel loads economically lies in the need for high quality building materials for fire safe housing.

With more restoration projects implemented and a growing demand for ethically sourced materials, timber frame structures and fire resistant homes, local jobs will be created in forestry, transport, pole processing, small pole home design, engineering, innovation and the trades.