Wood Resource Policy

The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) is the lead agency for this policy and coordinates it with the relevant partners. With its three priority areas of ‘optimised cascade use’, ‘climate-appropriate building and refurbishment’ and ‘communication, knowledge transfer and cooperation’, the Wood Action Plan serves the implementation of the Wood Resource Policy.

Optimised cascade use

The efficient extraction and use of resources is essential due to increasing environmental problems and the global scarcity of resources. With regard to the raw material wood, questions relating to the optimum use of wood and the advantages and disadvantages of multiple use (cascade use) are dealt with from both an ecological and economic perspective.

Climate-appropriate building and refurbishment

Around 45% of final energy in Switzerland is used for the construction of buildings, for heating and cooling, and for hot water production. This means that the building sector is one of the most resource-intensive and emits a considerable volume of environmentally-harmful and climate-damaging substances. Accordingly, this sector offers considerable potential when it comes to climate and energy policy – not only in relation to the construction of new buildings but also when it comes to the densification of existing urban space.

Communication, knowledge transfer and cooperation

The demand for wood from Swiss forests among private building clients is very low. Although institutional clients are showing a growing interest in sustainability, they rarely focus on wood as a building material. Architects, planners, engineers, and the property and finance sector require target-group-specific information. Greater cooperation between science, business and the public sector is considered necessary.