Woodworkers want your dead trees
Damon Barron figures more than 100 million pounds of wood get mulched or thrown away in Charlotte every year as trees come down.
We lose parts of the city’s canopy to storms, age, development, or intrusion on buildings, sidewalks or power lines.
That wood, and probably more, could be used locally for furniture, flooring, cabinets and other things, Barron says.
So he and others are working to get more trees to local artisans through Treecycle America. The network is collecting 20,000-30,000 pounds of trees weekly.
“The average piece of cherry veneer travels 15,000 miles to get to the consumer,” said Barron, who will be a guest speaker at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden on April 7. “My goal is to make one more thing in our world a little bit closer to home.”
Treecycle America also is bringing together arborists, designers and architects to support its concept of an Amazon-style local marketplace.
Homeowners can get involved by working with a Treecycle arborist to remove trees. Visit South End Art and Soul festival on May 2 to shop for goods made from local trees.
“We’re utilizing a natural resource to its highest potential,” Barron said.
Karen’s blog: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/home-garden/smarter-living/homelife-blog/; on Twitter @sullivan_kms.
Want to go?
Damon Barron will talk about his work creating local wood products from tree waste, noon-1 p.m. April 7 at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden’s First Tuesday program, 6500 S. New Hope Road, Belmont.
This story was originally published April 2, 2015 at 2:52 PM with the headline "Woodworkers want your dead trees."