Furniture and Environment: Environmentally Friendly Furniture
By Peter Nisbet
Furniture and environment are not usually two words that hang well together, and environmentally friendly furniture is regarded by many as an oxymoron. It takes a very great deal of time to grow trees, and the reason for the destruction of the rain forests is the massive market for wood, particularly by the construction and furniture industries.
However, some manufacturers have found ways to reduce their furniture carbon footprint, and Simply Amish is one of these. Simply Amish have found a way to manufacture environmentally friendly furniture without passing on any massive costs to customers. It doesn't have to be expensive to be environmentally friendly, and the USA has had bad press in recent years for its failure to control carbon emissions.
However, it is not only controlling emissions that is important - in fact controlling the need for such emissions is equally important, if not more so. There is also more to furniture and environment than just global warming, climate change and emissions! Here is how one American furniture manufacturer does its best to help reduce America's carbon footprint in this world of ours.
Continuation of Wood Sources
Simply Amish, the Illinois-based traditional furniture manufacturer, appreciates the fact that the trees suitable for furniture take a very long time to grow. Once you cut one down, it could take 20-30 years or longer for another to grow to take its place. That's why this company has taken the decision to help maintain sustainable forests: these are forests that are replanted as trees are cut, and the new trees should ideally reach maturity when the last of the originals have been harvested.
Simply Amish ensure that their hardwood suppliers employ the best possible practices in maintaining the viability of their timber sources. They ensure as far as they can that forestry is environmentally, economically and socially responsible, and that replanting policies ensure as far as possible that our children will also have viable wood for their own furniture.
Furniture and Environment: Grown and Made in America
This is connecting furniture and environment at source, and how Simply Amish claim to use environmentally friendly furniture manufacturing practices. In order to keep a handle on this, all their hardwood is located within a 500 mile radius of their craftsmen, many of whom work from home rather than in a furniture factory.
This has the added benefit of saving on the shipping costs and fuel used, leaving a carbon footprint considerably less than that of most other furniture firms - particularly those that use imported wood such as using African walnut rather than American walnut!
Your American furniture might be labeled 'Made in America' but is it grown in America? Do all the raw materials originate in the USA? As Simple Amish say 'made here, loved everywhere' and this company's furniture is not only made here but it is grown here! Solid wood furniture and the environment are intimately connected!
The Meaning of Environmentally Friendly Furniture
According to Simply Amish, 70% of the firm's furniture is hand-made by Amish people living no more than 20 miles from the firm's main distribution center. The majority of the other 30% live within 200 miles, and pick-ups from these are scheduled to coincide with deliveries made to dealers in the same area so that fuel usage and emissions are reduced to a minimum. That's what you call environmentally friendly furniture!
In fact, the Amish are one of the most environmentally friendly communities in the USA. They can their own food that is grown in their own gardens, jar their own pickles, and many still travel by horse and buggy. Their furniture is hand-made, thus reducing power usage. By drying their laundry on a washing line, the Amish genuinely contribute to a reduced carbon footprint.
It doesn't end there though! Simply Amish do not use cardboard boxes, corrugated board, polythene bubble wrap or polystyrene chips as packaging. They ship their furniture wrapped in blankets! Furniture and environment: this company does its best to make them blend. No foam to pollute the earth for thousands of years, and savings in energy and carbon emissions in its manufacture.
Avoiding Waste Contributes to a Healthier Planet
Nor is any wood wasted. Amish communities share their spare wood - the small pieces are used for kid's toys, the chips are used to heat homes and workshops and the sawdust is given to farmers for animal bedding. Nothing is wasted - if you take from nature, waste nothing!
Native Americans used every single part of the buffalo in honor of its life. Simply Amish use all of the timber they cut down to make their environmentally friendly furniture and contribute to a healthier planet. There is a lot more, such as geothermal heating, top of the range thermal insulation in the workshops - this is furniture and environment coming together in a friendly way. If you are looking for environmentally friendly furniture, check out Simply Amish.
More information on environmentally friendly furniture is available from Patterson Furniture. You will also find how furniture and environment can be connected to offer American furniture of extremely high quality at low prices.
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