Wood Products, Sustainable Forestry and such..

Professor Bennett was kind enough to send me this link:
Plywood vs OSB (oriented strand board)
http://www.ecohomemagazine.com/green-products/greening-the-shell.aspx
which essentially gives pros and cons for both products.
In a nutshell:
OSB: more enviromentally-friendly (made from small strands of lumber and uses the entire log), ave. $7 cheaper per sheet, but doesn't hold up well when exposed to extreme moisture (humid climates)
Ply: not as sustainable (uses thin sheets of wood peeled from larger, older trees, and leaves the center spindle of the tree as waste), costs more, but holds up better with moisture exposure

Also:
Wood Groups Dislike USGBC's Third Try To Write Rules on LEED Points
http://www.ecohomemagazine.com/news/2010/03/wood-groups-dislike-usgbcss-third-try-to-write-rules-on-leed-points.aspx
"At present, only FSC[Forest Stewardship Council]-certified lumber qualifies for points" LEED does NOT recognize points for other sustainable wood groups like SFI (Sustainable Forestry Initiative) This is problematic since "..many LEED builders who chase points will turn away reputable third-party certified SFI wood which is grown in their backyard, in the U.S. and Canada, and instead turn to FSC-certified wood--the vast majority of the FSC's global supply comes from overseas and often from countries without effective social laws." This is a good example to show that using the LEED system may not always be the most sustainable option.

And:
Terrapass has taken part in a forestry project in McCloud Forest on Mt. Shasta, California. http://www.terrapass.com/blog/posts/terrapass-first-forestry-project I was a little unsure about how the "buying carbon offsets" thing works and this article helped me to understand better. Terrapass footprint sells carbon offsets, and the money goes (in part) to fund sustainable forestry practices. Carbon reductions involve planting trees, forest management, paying people not to cut down trees, protecting rare species, etc. "The idea of locking up carbon in trees makes sense — after all, 20% of the climate change problem comes from deforestation" Terrapass claims that the conserved trees will be "permanent", however, they claim that they will be protected "far in the future" and imply over 10 years. I'm unsure how this can be guaranteed but I suppose having a goal is a good start.