WOOD has again emerged as a popular heating fuel in Germany and
France. A programme launched
seven years ago in the thickly wooded Landes region of southwestern
France to promote wood as fuel has
proved remarkably successful. The
plan was essentially aimed at clearing waste left behind by loggers and sawmills.
About 200 wood-burning furnaces
installed in government offices,
schools and apartment buildings use
damaged pine trees, pruned branches
and even driftwood found along the
Landes coast. Besides heating, the
low-cost method can clean up beaches and forests and provide jobs.
Wood heating is welcome in
Germany, too, where wood-based
industries find it difficult to dispose
of waste and loggers have been hard-hit by the import of cheap wood.
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