Un experto destaca el crecimiento de superficie arbolada en los bosques españoles, que en Navarra se ha incrementado un 24% en 20 años
An expert highlights the growth of wooded areas in Spanish forests, which in Navarre has increased by 24% in 20 years.
The use of wood in architecture financial aid to save energy, said Fermín Olabe, head of management Forestal del Gobierno foral, at the University of Navarra.
The annual growth of wood in Spanish forests is three times higher than the amount that is actually cut and harvested, according to Fermín Olabe, head of management Forestry of the Government of Navarra, at School of Architecture of the University of Navarra. He made these statements on the occasion of his lecture in the Master's Degree in design and management Environmental of Buildings (MDGAE), organized by the Chair Wood.
"The country's forests are expanding: Spain is increasing its wooded area at an annual rate much higher than the European average - 2.19% compared to 0.51% - so that it contributes more than 40% to the total European increase. Moreover, we are the second country in Europe, after Sweden, with the largest forest area", he stressed.
In the case of Navarre, he indicated that in the last 20 years the wooded area has grown by 24%, so that 65% of the area of the region is forest land.
Reduction of CO2 emissions
For Fermín Olabe, the timber sector is strategic, both in environmental terms (biodiversity) and in terms of Economics (forestry and industry) and employment. Regarding the latter, he pointed out that in Navarra there are 400 companies related to it, which offer work to some 5,000 people.
In that sense, he bet on promoting its use in architecture and construction "as long as it comes from sustainably managed forests and that origin is guaranteed", as a way to save energy throughout the useful life of a building. "Its cellular structure," he explained, "provides excellent thermal insulation, 15 times better than concrete, 400 times better than steel and 1,770 times better than aluminum.
He added two other advantages: it is a renewable raw subject material and it is the building material that requires the least energy for its production. "Each cubic meter of wood used as a substitute for other building materials reduces CO2 emissions into the atmosphere by a total average of 2 tons. From agreement with this figure, a 10% increase in the percentage of wooden houses in Europe would produce CO2 savings equivalent to 25% of the reductions prescribed by the Kyoto protocol ," he concluded.