I wrote a belated Blog Action Day post about three months ago entitled Brazilian Hardwood Floors - Can You Say "Slave Labor?" Please let me explain that I did not expect to change public opinion or enlighten more than a handful of individuals by simply posting something on my Minneapolis real estate blog. My ego is not quite that big. Nor did I expect a sea-change in consumer habits just because thousands of bloggers spent October 15, 2007 blogging about the environment. (What impact did blog action day have? I don't know if anyone has tried to quanitfy the impact of Blog Action Day. Perhaps if the bloggers focused on one specific environmental problem, there may have been more impact.)
However, I was contacted by a few readers who stated that they would now be more careful about purchasing exotic hardwoods for their remodelling projectsTypical harvesting techniques of teakwood, cherry, walnut, and mahogany will wipe out 7.5 acres of Brazilian rain forest per household floor installed. Tha't just for one house! The readers just did not care to be a part of that. Also, it is a poorly kept secret that peasants and even children are recruited and then held captive in lumber camps at gunpoint. The Brazilian government itself aknowledges that slave labor in rainforest industrries is a problem.
Now that I know a little bit about the subject, I feel sick when I see Brazilian cherry cabinets adorning a luxury home kitchen or Brazilian walnut gracing the floor of a multi-million dollar home. Sure, some of these woods may have been harvested in a responsible manner. However, most people do not know how it got there.
If you are building or remodeling a home, please check to see that the lumber is certified by the FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council.)
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