The AWC-led coalition convened to address the two proposed Buy Clean initiatives in Washington state and ultimately prevented both bills from advancing. One proposal, identical to two bills that failed in previous legislative sessions, was brought to the Washington State Building Code Council (WSBCC) to require that environmental product declarations be submitted for 75% of structural materials in a project. AWC supports Whole Building Life Cycle Assessments (WBLCA) to reduce the embodied carbon of structural building elements at the design phase, as opposed to relying on Environmental Product Declarations within a product category and which typically happens at the procurement phase.

But, prior to proposing this code revision, no outreach was conducted or engagement sought from impacted industries (wood, concrete, and steel). AWC was notified of a Building Code Technical Advisory Group (TAG) meeting (the group that recommends modifications to the larger Building Code Council) less than two days before the meeting was scheduled, leaving little time to coordinate with both state and national stakeholders to ensure that the wood product industry’s concerns with the proposal were properly heard. Under AWC’s leadership, a strong group was quickly formed, and a strategy outlined where AWC and APA testified against the proposal. The concrete industry, building associations, and others were also present to voice their strong opposition to the proposal. Ultimately, the TAG voted to recommend that the WSBCC not consider the proposal, notching a big win for the industry.

Based on this activity in Washington state, AWC drafted a model Build Clean bill using WBLCA in order to take a proactive position in the next state legislative session. This effort aligns with our Strategic Plan to advocate for policies and programs supporting our Climate and Carbon Principles and could be scaled to reach other states across the country.

This is true at the federal level as well, where AWC is seeking to incorporate WBLCA into federal procurement practices. Notably, AWC was successful in convincing GSA to do just that by including WBLCA in its main materials sourcing document, known as the P100. This remarkable policy shift means all future GSA building projects must use WBLCA, setting the groundwork for federal Build Clean. AWC was also successful in securing federal funding in the omnibus for GSA to analyze and evaluate existing buildings to assess their embodied carbon levels and create a “library of buildings” to use in benchmarking carbon reductions in future WBLCA efforts. The data will also be made accessible to the public to support WBLCA in the private sector.

AWC hosted representatives from Building Transparency (the parent organization to the EC3 software tool), Perkins & Will, and the Carbon Leadership Forum for a two-day tour of managed forests and mills. AWC carefully selected these individuals because they are recognized thought leaders in the carbon accounting space for the built environment. Our goal was to demonstrate, in real time, the extensive level of regulations of active forest management in the U.S. and the need for all types of forest management operations to support a viable, economically sustainable industry.

Day one featured a visit to actively managed industrial private land, public land, and a small forest landowner operation. On day two, the group visited a mill operating on a body of water and discussed mill efficiency, current technology, job creation, and the investments the sector makes in environmental restoration work in collaboration with tribal governments.

The site visits and related conversations signified another step on the path to educating key market players and demonstrating that U.S. forest practices and wood products are the most sustainable building products on the market. AWC’s efforts have also further strengthened our relationships with these key influencers, leading to closer collaboration on the development of carbon accounting tools and Build Clean legislative efforts.

In just one year at AWC, Rachael Jamison, Vice President of Markets & Sustainability, has made a significant impact in telling target audiences about the sustainability of wood products and the industry’s data collection efforts.

The VinZero Think Future podcast interviewed Rachael on how mass timber and wood products can improve the carbon footprint of the built environment. VinZero is a technology partner for the AEC community to drive the industry to net zero and has a network of more than 400,000 subscribers. The group reached out to AWC due to a recommendation from the International Code Council – another indication of the credible reputation AWC staff has built within the building code community. Listen to her interview here.

Her participation in the podcast led to her sitting on a virtual panel discussion on “Buildings at the Center of Business’ Push to Net-Zero” as part of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP27. AWC was the only building material group to be invited on the panel, which also featured Gensler, the International Code Council and VinZero Think Future.

She was interviewed in late 2022 by filmmakers working on a new documentary entitled, “Women of Carbon.” The film highlights some of the women leading the discussions around climate and carbon. Rachael spoke about the role of women in articulating the climate solutions offered through sustainable forestry and more robust wood products utilization. The film is tentatively scheduled to be premiered around Earth Day in 2024.

AWC added two new positions to fully round out our sustainability team.

Jeff Bradley joined AWC as our new Director, Sustainability Standards. Jeff previously worked as a shared staff member with AWC and the American Forest & Paper Association and brings a keen understanding of our industry and policy goals. His new role encompasses the strategic management of issues affecting wood products in domestic and international standard setting forums. This includes lifecycle assessment, circularity, green building certification systems and market access issues in a number of standards development arenas, such as ISO and ASTM. Jeff has worked in many of these same forums on behalf of AF&PA, and has earned a sterling reputation, winning several awards as a respected and effective advocate. He also has a strong forestry background, which will be invaluable in our cooperative work with forestry groups like the National Alliance of Forest Owners and others on issues of shared interest.

Anna Ostrander also joined AWC as an LCA Data Specialist. Her focus is on our database project and other related LCA and sustainability issues. Anna has a fantastic technical background, having earned a master’s degree from the University of Michigan’s School for Environment & Sustainability. Her final project entailed footprinting the entire school’s Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions and making recommendations to achieve carbon neutrality, a major task requiring a tremendous amount of data analysis. Anna’s experience will be essential as we continue to grapple with scoping our industry’s carbon footprint.

The omnibus appropriations package to fund the federal government for another year included significant wins for our work in lifecycle analysis (LCA) and defense/military construction provisions.

The legislation directs the General Services Administration (GSA) to analyze and evaluate existing buildings to assess their embodied carbon levels and create a “library of buildings.” The data would be made accessible to the public and inform future policy direction on reductions below the baselines to maximize carbon reduction in federal buildings.

It also provides up to $5 million to Department of Energy to increase participation in databases used in generating environmental product declarations, the disclosure tool measuring the embodied carbon of a product or service, in coordination with the Environmental Protection Agency. This funding could be directed to support further development of LCA Commons, an existing federal database of lifecycle assessment data for construction materials.

Finally, the bill advanced the use of mass timber in Department of Defense Military Construction (MILCON) projects. Altogether, it appropriated more than $47 million to various mass timber, cross-laminated timber and modern timber products for construction of Army and Air Force projects. Overall, this was an extremely successful appropriations season for AWC and the wood products industry. Read AWC’s press statement on the omnibus here.

The Los Angeles City Council motion to extend the Fire District One ban on Type IV and V construction continues to be held up in the Committee process. At the same time, AWC’s grassroots effort and commitment to defeating such unfounded legislation promoted by competing materials and bring the tall mass timber provisions to the city continues to build momentum.

AWC successfully built support from sustainable building and affordable housing advocates while also tamping down the now dismissed “wildfire mitigation” arguments by motion proponents. As a result, various neighborhood and home-owner organizations in targeted Councilmember districts have been brought into the debate. Consultants and coalition partners have been participating in these discussions, supporting successful motions to oppose the motion to expand Fire District One. AWC Regional Code Manager Paul Armstrong participated in the Woodland Hills Association meeting to provide a technical and code perspective.

Build with Strength (BWS) lobbyists have also been participating in these meetings in unsuccessful attempts to counter AWC’s success. The BWS lobbyists have erred by not identifying themselves and drew formal complaints from neighborhood groups and a review by the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, which recommended a major fine against the BWS lobbyist. The Commission considered a fine of $195,000 and ultimately fined the lobbyist $65,000. Some of the neighborhood council members are also proposing updates to the city’s lobbying law to make it easier to enforce these types of violations. The editorial board of the Los Angeles Times recently used BWS as the lead example of the need for lobbying reforms in the city.

The proposed expansion of the ban on wood construction based on a Fire District designation received another blow when the Valley Industry and Commerce Association’s (VICA) Land Use Committee voted unanimously to recommend opposing the expansion to other regional commercial areas within the city. Prior to the vote, Armstrong gave a brief presentation on the topic to the VICA Board, which represents 245,000 businesses in the San Fernando Valley and is very influential to the area’s City Council members.

The proposed areas of expansion to the Fire District are those that allow for mid- and high-rise construction but still carry forward the ban on low rise wood construction as well. Numerous groups have come out in opposition to the ban and would like to eliminate the Fire District altogether based on the performance of the more up-to-date Building and Fire codes.

AWC’s President & CEO Jackson Morrill was interviewed on the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) podcast Housing Developments on how building material choices can impact the environment and making the case that wood is part of the solution.

For the second year in a row, AWC defeated local lumber grading legislation in the North Carolina Legislature. The “Act to Promote Local Sawmills” would have directed the Building Code Council to amend the North Carolina Residential Code for one- and two-family dwellings to allow dimension lumber that had not been grade-stamped in certain circumstances. Industry agreed to amended language that stated that the lumber conforms with product and inspection standards under American Softwood Lumber Standard PS 20 and the lumber is certified by an inspector who is certified by an accredited independent third-party agency of the American Lumber Standard Committee. The amended bill then moved to the Senate Rules Committee, where it was not voted on before the session concluded, killing the bill for the year.

Efforts by the bill sponsor for additional amendments helped the North Carolina Forestry Association, AWC and AWC member companies defeat the bill, but it is anticipated that it will be reintroduced. AWC maintains that the only safe, appropriate use of ungraded or “non-certified” lumber is for small, accessory structures built ancillary to a primary place of residency. Even then, a declaration of species type and estimated grade equivalent should be required to allow the building official to have some confidence in the lumber performance and be subject to building official approval.

In Michigan, AWC participated in and provided verbal comments in support of a successful appeal to allow a heavy timber roof for a new educational facility. At issue was whether the heavy timber wood roof incorporating cross-laminated timber panels proposed for use was restricted based on a Michigan law containing requirements for materials to be “fire-resisting.” Based on the information AWC presented, the Appeals Board voted unanimously that the proposed cross-laminated timber roof system met the requirements and is an approved material. The education facility in question was one of several in progress by the project team that called upon AWC to assist with explaining the technical requirements of the building code for fire resistance of materials. This marked another important victory for AWC’s efforts to overcome unfounded restrictions on wood construction in accordance with the Strategic Plan, especially as the use of mass timber in school construction continues to gain momentum across the country.

Adoption of the 2021 International Building Code (IBC) is accelerating, and AWC continues to provide technical assistance to aid in the process and remove unfounded prohibitions to wood design and construction. In the 2021 adoption process in the City of Frisco, Texas, located in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, a proposal was considered to prohibit the new types of mass timber construction in hotels, motels, and similar transient use buildings, as well as Type IV-HT and light wood frame construction, which were already prohibited per the city building code. AWC met with a key building official to highlight the problems with this proposed amendment. The amendment ultimately failed to pass. When the 2021 IBC goes into effect in early 2023, all mass timber Type IV construction, including Type IV-HT, will be allowed in hotels, motels, and similar transient use buildings. Frisco will continue its prohibition of light wood frame construction in these use groups but has agreed to further discussions with AWC to study and address their concerns.

Additionally, AWC had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the Dallas Department of Buildings to discuss plans for adopting the 2021 IBC. The City of Dallas has already amended the building code to allow tall mass timber buildings, but the 2021 IBC adoption may create additional opportunities favorable to mass timber.