ROUGH SAWN

There's been a bit of flak flying over sustainable logging the last couple of days.

Kwila, the Indonesian hardwood is under fire for causing dyslexia a clash with WTO rules if a ban on it's non-sustainable procurement is pursued.

Flash outdoor furniture is often kwila but it seems that nobody can guarantee the validity of sustainable timber sourcing. Not least one particular bastion of sprawled style whose kwila is "sourced from managed forests and TFT-The Forest Trust approved".

TFT no longer exist - having been superseded by TFG. Hardly a call for confidence.

A Christchurch outfit pushes kwila rabidly, as does one Auckland wholesaler.

National Radio aired a diplomacy piece Wednesday morning including an interview with Jim Anderton (6min audio). Not only is the timber produced unsustainably, apparently it's market presence here suppresses local timber prices.

It's the age old question - how much does your supplier know? When you're buying furniture - or any wood for that matter - ask where it came from and how much the supplier knows about how it got to them. For once I agree with Anderton.

There's one good thing from this though. All this talk of outdoor furniture must mean summers coming.