Second international conference of COST Action FP1407 “Understanding wood modification through an integrated scientific and environmental impact approach”

The second international conference of COST Action FP1407 “Understanding wood modification through an integrated scientific and environmental impact approach” (ModWoodLife) brought together 77 researchers and industry representatives from 26 countries. It was held in Brno, Czech Republic from 29- 30 September 2016.  The two day conference was focused on “Innovative production technologies and increased wood products recycling and reuse”, including state-of-the-art production technologies in wood modification, as well as development of recycling technologies and systems for modified wood, related barriers, and challenges. Special emphasis was given to the cascading use of wood and related environmental impacts.

The conference kicked off with a keynote lecture by prestigious Professor Dr. Klaus Richter of the Technische Universität München (TUM), Department of TUM School of Life Sciences Weihenstephan where he is the chair of Wood Research Munich. The title of Dr. Richter’s lecture was “Cascade use of wood - illusion or silver bullet for sustainability”. With a thorough explanation of the forest-wood products value chain, Dr. Richter set the stage for why cascading wood recovery is a logical and highly effective practice to be implemented.

Innovation and environmental aspects of using wood and wood products was one of the main focuses of the conference. This is very real problem with respect to challenges for all involved: scientific community, industry, and the public. Life cycle assessment (LCA) as a method to assess the environmental impacts of the building process was discussed.

The Action provides the critical mass of Europe-wide knowledge needed to achieve the future developments in the wood modification processing with integrating assessment of process parameters, developed product properties, and environmental impacts. This conference in Brno facilitated the exchange of knowledge and ideas in the subject of wood modification and is a step forward for the field.

The second international conference of COST Action FP1407 was a success and a wonderful opportunity to meet with colleagues, exchange ideas, and strengthen mutual cooperation, so the Wood Products' community will become stronger and more successful in promoting its visions in our society. We look forward to the next meeting of the FP1407 ModWood Life community.