If we're talking about how wood is made, all of us know that firsthand, wood comes from trees. But, as with some of the materials we wrote about in the past, in order to be used for production, it needs to be processed, which can happen in various ways, depending of its end use.

Depending on the desired product, wood needs to be sawed in certain shapes and sizes, which can then be further processed to make things like paper, tables, doors or even houses. Certain treatments can be applied to wood in order to prevent its ageing and to protect it from the elements.

How is wood recycled

Depending on the wood type, if it's treated or not, the recycling process differs slightly, but generally speaking, once it is collected and sent to recycling centers, wood or timber is sorted and separated. This prepares the type of wood for the recycling process.

Wood shredders are the special machines taking care of breaking down various types of wood in different sizes and shapes, depending on the future use for the material, such as furniture, biomass or panel boards.

Generally speaking, the large parts of wood obtained from recycling are turned into furniture or construction materials, while small parts are being processed further to create animal bedding.

Why it's important to recycle wood

Experts at EGGER, an Austrian company that produces wood-based panel products, say that recycling wood is important from many stand points, which involve the customer, as well as companies and communities.

"As far as EGGER Romania is concerned, this activity is important from one main stand point being resources conservation. By using and reconditioning wood products, companies can reduce their demand for prime matter, lowering the exploitation of this very valuable material", Green Start-Up learned from company officials in our country.

Besides saving trees, already a huge benefit, recycling also helps us use all wood resources that might be forgotten around the environment, as these can pose a serious fire risk. Not only that, but by recycling, we are sending less wood to the landfills or to the incinerators.

These are less desired ways to deal with wood waste, because they contribute to climate-related issues, such as greenhouse gas emissions, while also taking away valuable materials.

EGGER officials also believe that recycling wood is less energy intensive than using fresh resources. This can save wood manufacturers, such as EGGER, reduce their use of energy, while also reducing their carbon footprint, by using resources already available in the economy.

What types of wood can be recycled

This depends on the company, but generally speaking, most wood waste can be reprocessed in a way. EGGER Romania reprocesses various types of wood waste, as per company representatives. Thus, anything from wood pellets, demolition scrap materials or various types of wood packaging can be processed into new products that can be introduced in the economy.

Experts at EGGER emphasize that sorting and readying materials for recycling is critical in order to get the most out of the wood materials that are to be recycled.

Also, wood can be recycled multiple times, but it depends on the type of wood that we're talking about, its quality and also its final use case.

"For example, massive wood or hardwood, can be repurposed many times if it has been cared for properly. However, for manufactured wooden products, such as medium-density fiber wood, have a more limited recycling potential, due to their composition and the fact that they can degrade faster", EGGER officials told us.

What can we do with recycled wood

The wood recycled by EGGER Romania is mostly use for manufacturing particle boards, those being the prime matter for manufacturing furniture. For manufacturing particle boards, EGGER Romania was able to use 20% recycle wood in the production process of these materials, thanks to the company's five collecting centers.

Some companies even take scrap wood from railways or old buildings in order to make vintage flooring, which can be popular among some homeowners.

Also, should it not be suitable for repurposing anymore, reclaimed wood can also be used as biomass for producing heat or electricity. Biomass is considered a form of renewable energy, since the resources used for powering these plants are renewable, although we can't count on them too much, since we need to make sure nature has the time to build back the resources we use.

These are just some of the use cases for old wood products that have been discarded by previous owners. The most important part is that wood shouldn't be treated as waste and, instead, turned in to recycling centers and companies that can give it new life in the form of new products or fuel for biomass plants.

In Romania, there isn't enough data on how much wood is being recycled, we've been told, but wooden packaging is being counted, thankfully. In 2022, out of 639.000 tons of packaging found on the market, about 390.000 has been reprocessed, meaning a 61% recycling rate.