ECONOMIC EVALUATION OF ALTERNATE MATERIALS TO TREATED WOOD IN CALIFORNIA prepared for Western Wood Preservers Institute 7017 NE Highway 99 Suite 108 Vancouver, Washington 98665 web site: www.wwpinstitute.org prepared by Stephen T. Smith, P.E. AquAeTer, Inc. P. O. Box 1600 Helena, MT 59624 email: [email protected] May 2003 optimizing environmental resources - water; air; earth Economic Evaluation of Alternate Materials to Treated Wood In California May 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................................... ii 1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................................1 2. CALIFORNIA TREATED WOOD MARKET.................................................................................................2 3. CONSTANTS AND CONVERSION FACTORS.............................................................................................3 4. RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION ............................................................................4 4.1. Market Description ........................................................................................................................................4 4.2. Evaluation......................................................................................................................................................4 4.3. Alternate Materials ........................................................................................................................................4 4.4. Cost of Alternate Materials............................................................................................................................5 5. UTILITIES ........................................................................................................................................................7 5.1. Market Description ........................................................................................................................................7 5.2. Evaluation......................................................................................................................................................7 5.3. Alternate Materials ........................................................................................................................................7 5.4. Cost of Alternate Materials............................................................................................................................7 6. RAILROADS ....................................................................................................................................................9 6.1. Market Description ........................................................................................................................................9 6.2. Evaluation....................................................................................................................................................10 6.3. Alternate Materials ......................................................................................................................................10 6.4. Cost of Alternate Materials..........................................................................................................................10 7. MARINE CONSTRUCTION..........................................................................................................................12 7.1. Market Description ......................................................................................................................................12 7.2. Evaluation....................................................................................................................................................12 7.3. Alternate Materials ......................................................................................................................................12 7.4. Cost of Alternate Materials..........................................................................................................................12 8. ROADS AND HIGHWAYS ...........................................................................................................................14 8.1. Market Description ......................................................................................................................................14 8.2. Evaluation....................................................................................................................................................14 8.3. Alternate Materials ......................................................................................................................................14 8.4. Cost of Alternate Materials..........................................................................................................................14 9. OTHER MARKETS........................................................................................................................................15 10. CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................................16 REFERENCES............................................................................................................................................................17 TABLES Page i Economic Evaluation of Alternate Materials to Treated Wood In California May 2003 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Legislation and/or regulatory changes are being considered in California that could prohibit the use of new treated wood products. In addition, some Federal, regional and local regulatory agencies have expressed concern with treated wood and suggested that economically viable alternative materials are available and should be used. Treated wood alternatives include steel, concrete, plastic, and composite materials manufactured to perform the same end use as the treated wood products. The logical question is how economical are these alternatives on a project basis and what would be the overall impact of using alternatives. This paper seeks to address these important questions. The alternatives to treated wood products usually cost more to purchase and more to install than treated wood. The increase in installed cost generally ranges from about 50 percent to 200 percent more than treated wood. In California, about $1.0 billion is spent annually in projects using treated wood. It is estimated that the cost of the same work would increase by about $2.4 billion to a total of about $3.4 billion annually. Increased costs would impact wide segments of the California economy, including the following: • Residential and commercial construction costs increase by about $1.1 billion per year. • Utilities pole costs increased by about $100 million. • Railroads would be forced to replace existing systems at a cost of about $960 million per year for the next 10 years while also increasing tie replacement costs by about $45 million per year. • Marine construction cost would increase by about $130 million per year. • Road and highway transportation agencies costs would increase by $6 million annually. Further, indirect cost and impacts would be likely as the alternate products may not perform as well as treated wood or result in higher operational or maintenance costs. Use of unproven materials or construction methods could result in accidents, injuries, and/or loss of service by utilities or railroads. Page ii Economic Evaluation of Alternate Materials to Treated Wood In California May 2003 1. INTRODUCTION Preservative treated wood is used widely throughout California and the world. Creosote has been used to preserve wood since the late 19th century and was critical to the successful development of the railroad transportation system that benefits all today. Other preservatives entered the marketplace in the 1950s with numerous improvements over the years. Treated wood products are now common in uses such as utility poles, railroad ties, pilings, sign and guard rail posts, fencing, outdoor decks, public boardwalks, foundation sill plates, and agricultural supports. These uses have become common because wood is a strong, flexible, economic building material that, when treated, will last a long time in moist and/or outdoor environments. In fact, depending on the severity of the use and environment, treated wood lasts for more than 20 years and often as long as 100 years. Legislation has been introduced in California that would prohibit the use of most treated wood products, including nearly all that are now common. An assumption of this legislation is that alternatives to treated wood are practically and economically available. In addition some Federal, regional and local regulatory agencies have expressed concern with treated wood and suggested that economically viable alternative materials are available and should be used. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the economics of changing from the established treated wood products to alternative products. Alternatives to treated wood vary according to the uses. For residential outdoor construction, such as for decks, fences, and landscaping, products manufactured from recycled plastic or plastic wood composites have entered the market. Such products allow the homeowner a very similar end product, such as an elevated deck and railing system. Other