More than a century after steel and concrete became the standard for building highrise buildings, the humble tree is making a comeback. The Alphabet Inc.-backed company is proposing the Quayside community be centred around a dozen timber buildings, each a mix of commercial, retail and residential spaces. Mass timber design can achieve a 15 per cent reduction in operational costs compared to the baseline, and results in a significant reduction in carbon emissions during operations, according to a November Seattle mass timber tower case study by design firm DLR Group.. The nation is already seeing $1 billion ($750 million U.S.) spent on mass timber construction every year and there are already 200 mass timber projects over six stories in the queue in British Columbia ready for construction once the changes are approved, he said. It could be five or 10 years until mass timber creates a lot of incremental demand for lumber, Wilde said.

Source: thestar February 08, 2019 13:52 UTC