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On May 22, 2008 Congress passed the Lacey Act which prohibits the importing of illegally harvested wood and wood products. This legislation sets a ground breaking precedent for the global trade in wood flooring and other wood related products and was widely supported by environmental, industry and trade organizations.

This new law leads the way in supporting other countries’ efforts to govern their own natural resources to ensure that only legally logged timber for flooring and furniture is sold into the United States. The Act goes a long way to putting in place powerful incentives for timber  producing countries such as China, Russia and Honduras to trade in wood products that come from legally logged sources or risk paying huge penalties . This is the world’s first such legislation and according to a Greenpeace spokesperson “is the most important piece of US forestry legislation passed in the past decade”. According to industry experts there is no doubt that the Lacey Act will have a significant impact on the sales of wood flooring in the United States for many years.

According to Alexander von Bismarck, Executive Director of the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) “Passage of this law marks a new phase in the global fight to transform the timber trade”. The EIA has been actively engaged in the investigation of illegal logging for the past ten years and through their efforts were able to bring the coalition together. The EIA estimated that in 2006 10% or $3.8 billion dollars of US wood imports were derived from illegally logged timber. According to the EIA video “Increasingly China is the first stop for high risk timber” It goes on to state that “China relies on a constant stream of imported material much of this comes from the world’s illegal logging hotspots like the temperate forests of Russian where according the EIA is the location of some of the most lawless logging found anywhere on earth. According to published material enough illegal logs cross the Russia/China border each day to fill 3 ½ football fields.

Some industry officials state that the problem may even be worst in South America where up to 50% of the timber is illegally logged. With this legislation the flow of illegally logged timber will slow and then with tighter enforcement hopefully be eliminated. As Mr. Bismarck stated “the world’s biggest consumer nation has sent a message that will be heard in forest communities around the world”.

The Lacey Act provisions have been in effect since May 22, 2008 however the full impact will be after December 15^th, 2008 when all importers are required to provide a basic declaration. This declaration will accompany every shipment of wood or wood products. The purpose of these declarations is to increase transparency about the wood and wood products trade and enable the U.S. government to better enforce the law. The declaration must contain: 1. The scientific name of any species used 2. The country of harvest, 3. The quantity and measure, and 4.The value.

The new legislation will be enforced by a combination of Federal agencies including the Department of Agriculture (APIS) and US department of the Interior supported by the Department of Homeland Security, which controls U.S. customs and monitors the borders through Customs and Border Protection The Act allows for penalties up to $500,000 for corporation, $250,000 for individual, or twice maximum gain/loss from transaction and possible prison for up to five years. In the case where a buyer unknowingly purchases illegal wood then the penalty would only be a Forfeiture of goods.

So what can flooring retailers protect themselves?  According to Elinor Colbourn, Senior Trial Attorney, US Department of Justice all buyers of wood flooring and wood products must exercise “due care” by asking suppliers questions in order to comply with all relevant laws” .She suggest that “companies should implement solid supply chain principles and where ever possible verify the legality of your wood”. This may involve asking for proof from suppliers that the product was legally sourced and have them provide verification. Another method to ensure compliance is for flooring retailers to purchase FSC certified wood flooring from an approved supplier. All FSC suppliers are Chain of Custody certified meaning that the product is legally logged.

For more information contact the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA).

Peter is the founder and president of Magnum Floors (www.magnumfloors.com), Charleston, SC – one of the Nation’s leading sources for certified green wood flooring products.

Over his 25+ years of International flooring experience Peter has achieved a leading role in developing new markets for muli-national flooring companies. His industry uccesses include:

Under an exclusive agreement with UNILIN DÉCOR’s, Belgium, (US annual sales $80,000,000) Mr. Rundle introduced UNICLIC laminate products to North America. In 2006 Unilin was purchase by Mohawk Industries (Dalton, GA.) for $2.3 billion.

Entered into an exclusive agreement with Mannington Mills (annual sales $500,000,000) to introduce their wood products into Europe and later became the first European distributor.
Acted in the capacity of the senior consultant to Sultan Vicwood (K. T. Chong) to bring their African timber and Chinese manufactured flooring products to the US markets. Vicwood has significant timber holdings in Africa (estimated at 8 million hectares) 4,000 employees in China and commercial real estate in Hong Kong.

Develop the strategy and then arranged for the first shipments of Chinese hardwood flooring to CCA Global (US flooring sales $2 billion annually).

Developed the first North American laminate program with Weyerhaeuser (annual sales $21.9 billion in 2006). First year laminate sales were in excess of $12,000,000.

Owned and developed the Easy Lock Laminate flooring brand which was later introduced to LOWES HOME CENTER and sold to Kronotex

Introduced prefinished solid wood flooring into the United Kingdom and Ireland by establishing relationships with Canada’s largest solid wood flooring manufactures

 Reader Question:

“I am getting my ceramic tiles cleaned and the grout sealed and the professionals are using different methods:

1. High pressure washer w/chemical and a color sealer for the grout.

2. A truck mounted hot water extraction system (also used for carpets) and a grout sealant (tubing)

3. Hand scrubbing w/a grout sealant that claims is good for 5 yrs.

Which method is better to clean my ceramic tile?

The price per square foot is the same for the 3 professionals.

Thanks for your input!!”

Answer:

For this response, I turned to the professionals at The Grout Doctor. Here’s what they said:

Option #1 – In my experience high pressure is not good for grout.  It opens up the natural pores in the grout and allows the grout to collect more dirt, grime and grit.  The color sealer I cannot comment on without knowing the type used

Option #2 – Pretty much the same thing as option #1.  A high pressure truck mount extraction system can open up grouts natural pores as well.

Option #3 – This cleaning method is good and safe for the grout as long as the correct chemicals and dwell time are utilized.

At The Grout Doctor we used hand scrubbing with proper chemicals and dwell time.  Then would color seal with a 3 yr. guarantee.

 Reader Question:

I have vinyl flooring in my kitchen and I have put plastic tips on my wooden chairs.

The problem is there are black marks where the chairs are moved back and forth.  How can I get rid of this problem?  Is it best to have no tips on the chairs or what? I have tried to put felt tips on the end of the chair, but that only last a little while and they come off.  I would appreciate any help you could give me.   Thanks.

Answer:

Thanks for your question. To remove the black marks, rub each mark with a rubber eraser. If that doesn’t work, try mixing a small amount of baking powder and water. Rub the mixture on the scuff marks with a clean, dry, white cloth. Another solution that may work is rubbing non gel toothpaste on the marks with a clean, dry, white cloth.

Although felt is recommended, an alternative to the black plastic protectors, you can try non-pigmented plastic protectors.

The sponsor of this blog is The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) where you will find a website full of flooring solutions for the way you live. Below is a breakdown of all of the helpful tools you will find on the site. Prepare to spend some time and have some fun!

In the Design Center portion of the site, you will find:

• Ask Kerry! – Looking for advice from an expert? Kerry can help you find the right design solution for your flooring project.
• Virtual Room Designer – A tool that helps you envision different floor coverings in different rooms.
• A quiz on how you live – The answers to these questions will play a vital factor in your decision-making process regarding the color, design, and products that you will select for your project.
• Design Styles – An index on different design styles.
• Designer’s Corner – A library of articles written by the design industry’s best and brightest and updated frequently to capture the latest news.
• Gallery of Floors – Room scenes of different floor coverings in different room types.
• What I like quiz - Created by our design and decorating experts, this interactive quiz is just 10 questions that are easy, fun and take just a few minutes to answer.
  There are no wrong answers; just answer as thoughtfully as you can and have fun!
• My workbook – A place to save your design ideas.
  

For each type of flooring, you will find:

• Product Catalog
• How It’s Made
• Styles
• Before You Buy
• Installation
• Care
• Glossary

New to the site, you will find Green Solutions where you can find more about:

How much does it really cost to add decorative tiles to create a custom shower, tub surround or tub  backsplash? You may look at the beautiful examples in magazines or in the tile showrooms and think there’s no way you can afford a shower like that, so you settle for plain tile. All the while, you are wondering in the back of your mind just how much it would cost. Or, you see a tile that you like and see the price tag that each tile is $20 or so per piece and just assume that the total cost will be outrageous. Take a look at the math below and you will see that a custom shower is not so far out of reach!

For example, without looking at installation costs because they vary so much from area to area, let’s look at material only:

• If you have a shower that is 5′x5′ with a shower door on the 4th wall, you will need 15-20 lineal feet or so of a decorative tile to create a decorative band. If the tiles cost $10 each, the total cost is only $150-$200 for the material. If the tiles cost $20 each, the total cost is only $300-$400 for the material.
• If you have a tub surround that is 5′ wide, you will need around the same amount as above.
• You could also buy decorative dots and place them in the intersections of tile installed on the diagonal for around the same price.

Another option: Say you want to use glass tile and you only need 15 lineal feet for an eye level band and your retailer tells you that you have to buy the whole box of glass tiles or glass mosaic tiles. Because glass mosaics come on a mesh backing, different shapes can be cut out of each sheet to create the size you need.

Here are some things you can do with the extra tile in order not to be wasteful:

• Add “dots” or squares in the intersections of the wall tile with the decorative band
• Add “dots” in the intersections of the floor tile
• Frame the bathroom mirror
• Use the extra tiles for a sink splash
• Instead of one decorative band, install more than one to create a stripe effect
• Glue the extra tiles to pictures frames
• Put a cork backing on a square of tiles and make coasters

Before deciding that you cannot afford a custom look in a shower or bath area, have your local retailer price some options for you in a budget that you are comfortable with.

If you are ready to get started and are looking for a local retailer – click here: