The B.C. lumber industry is standing by to see how wood-frame construction fared in Japan's devastating earthquake, but is optimistic.
"All systems are open for scrutiny, but there's been so much work on seismic performance of wood that probably it will perform very well," says Paul Newman, an official with the Council of Forest Industries, which represents most Interior lumber manufacturers.
It is, however, too early too make that assessment, said Newman, who was in Japan when the earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit the island country.
And Newman's primary concern is for the people in the Japan who are still dealing with the fallout of the devastation.
Newman had just exited a train on a platform three stories up when the earthquake hit. It rattled the train against the platform, and dropped people to their knees.
Newman, who has visions of the platform collapsing, said he was thankful for Japan's stringent building codes.
Only recently has China passed Japan as B.C.'s No. 2 destination for lumber.
The British Columbia government and industry have worked hard to introduce North American-style, two-by-four construction to Japan.
Interestingly, two-by-four construction received a boost following the 1995 Kobe earthquake which levelled much of that city's housing and killed more than 6,000 people.
It was the traditional Japanese timber-frame housing that collapsed, not the two-by-four construction, noted Newman.
Two-by-four construction has been tested in a research institute in Japan, withstanding a simulation twice as powerful at the Kobe earthquake.
B.C. Jobs, Tourism and Innovation Minister Pat Bell, who holds responsibility for global wood marketing, said the province expects to play some role in supporting reconstruction in Japan.
However, Bell said it is too early to say exactly what that will be. He noted that it's important to remember that Japan is still dealing with the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami: recovering survivors and mitigating the threat of nuclear fallout from damaged reactors.
Bell, who will make a marketing trip to China later this month, is considering a stop-over in Japan if it is appropriate.
North central-B.C. lumber companies have benefited from growing demand in Asia, particularly in China.
Forest industry analyst Mike Richmond says the devastating effects in Japan are expected to exert upward pressure on the already improving lumber market. That will be the impact of rebuilding efforts in Japan, said Richmond, an analyst with Salman Partners.
