Benefits of Mass Timber 

Reduce Carbon Footprint of Built Environment

Building with mass timber will accelerate the region’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions, as mass timber products are manufactured from renewable materials with low embodied carbon. As a replacement for, and in concert with, concrete and steel construction, mass timber can meaningfully reduce the carbon footprint of buildings, as the energy and carbon emissions associated with the manufacture of mass timber is significantly lower than what is required to manufacture concrete and steel. Further, mass timber structures are lightweight, often requiring smaller foundations and lateral force resisting systems, reducing overall material consumption.

While the relative benefit of mass timber is understood and accepted, more information is required to accurately assess the carbon footprint of mass timber buildings. Information needed is regarding the carbon footprint of various forest management practices, as well as the end-of-life opportunities for the mass timber structural components once a building reaches the end of its useful life.

Construct Buildings that Feel Good to Be In

Mass timber buildings in which the timber remains exposed to view have a biophilic quality that reminds us that we are part of nature. Living, working, learning and recreating in buildings that incorporate wood affects us on a physiological level, reducing blood pressure, heart rates, and activating the parasympathetic nervous system which produces a feeling of calm.

Reduce Impact of Construction on the Neighborhood

Mass timber buildings, due to their prefabricated nature, are erected quickly, quietly, and with minimal waste generated on-site. A mass timber structure will require only one-quarter the number of truck deliveries compared to a concrete structure, due to its lightweight and componentization. As such, the use of mass timber could transform construction from a nuisance into an attraction.

Support the Region’s Rural Timber Communities

The State of Washington has a robust forest products economy, and several mass timber manufacturers that sell products across the United States. The use of mass timber in construction has a ripple effect of benefiting the rural communities that operate the manufacturing facility, run the sawmills that provide lumber to said manufactures, and manage the forests that provide logs to said sawmills.

The potential for wealth-building in rural timber communities is contingent upon procurement decisions made by the consumers of mass timber. We have an opportunity to revitalize urban-rural economic ecosystems and support wealth-building for a broader number of communities, and for the Tribes located in Washington State, by specifying wood from those communities for our mass timber buildings. The alternative may be that that wealth is consolidated amongst larger industry players, with potentially lower social justice and equity outcomes. Importantly, the use of mass timber invites us to ask the questions: “where is the wood coming from, and who is benefiting as a result?”

Support Healthy Forest Ecosystems

The Forests of the Pacific Northwest and in Washington State are healthier when managed for a wide variety of values including wildlife habitat, clean water, clean air, recreation, cultural use, and timber.  Markets such as mass timber construction are the economic engine supporting sustainable forest management, and so the opportunity exists to support the long-term vitality of the region’s forests through increased use of mass timber in construction. (For a sense of scale, it is important to understand that mass timber manufacturing accounts for less than one percent of softwood lumber consumption in the United States, as of 2024.)

Specifically, in the forests of eastern Washington east of the Cascades, the increased risk and severity of wildfire has spawned a general awareness around the need for selective thinning - particularly on public lands - to reduce the fuel load and create the conditions for forest ecosystem health. The mass timber industry is putting those logs that have been selectively thinned from high-risk forests to good use.

Of course, as with the equity objectives discussed above, there is an opportunity to support exemplary forestry practices by being selective in how we procure wood for mass timber projects.

Still, there is much work to do to accelerate the rate of adoption for this method of construction so that we can meet the climate crisis and the housing crisis head-on.