As many environmentalists say, one of the best ways we can protect the earth is by making lifestyle changes. From recycling, using less water, to creating less trash in our day-to-day lives, some of these changes can get some getting used to. If you're looking to reduce your environmental impact, one of the easier changes is purchasing reclaimed wood furniture when the time for new furniture comes around. Furniture from reclaimed and recycled woods offers several benefits for the environment, and the furniture itself is just as beautiful as furniture (if not more) than mass produced furniture. Read on to learn just some of the environmental benefits of purchasing reclaimed wood furniture.

Preventing Deforestation

Trees grow slowly, and are a vital part of many ecosystems. They clean the air, their roots prevent erosion by holding soil in place, and they provide habitats for many species. Massive lumber harvesting programs can destroy those ecosystems. They can come back, but it takes decades for them to do so naturally, or millions of dollars of funding for artificial reforestation programs.

Upcycling wooden furniture reduces the demand for new lumber. That means that fewer trees get cut down every year, so they can continue to support healthy ecosystems. That supports the fight against climate change, the extinction of rare species, and plenty of other environmental problems.

Lower Invested Energy

Producing any product requires energy. It takes energy to harvest raw materials, ship components to their destination, put them together, and send the final products to stores. Most of that energy comes from fossil fuels. Not only are they a finite resource, but extracting them from the environment and using them can also cause environmental damage. Choosing products with low invested energy reduces the amount of fuel that is needed to produce them, which cuts down on the negative side effects of using that fuel.

Recycling wood eliminates the energy that is needed to harvest and process the lumber. Since most of it gets sourced locally, it also cuts down on shipping. These factors make it significantly more energy-efficient than conventional wood furniture.

Less Waste

Humans produce a monumental amount of garbage, and it all goes into landfills. That is a problem because those landfills take up space that could be kept in a natural state to ensure biodiversity, preserve space for wildlife, and prevent pollution. Landfills expand to accommodate trash as people produce it, so anything that reduces the amount of garbage that people produce will mean less space gets wasted on landfills.

All recycling cuts down on garbage, including creating reclaimed wood furniture instead of throwing it away. The wood that would end up as litter or be left to rot in a dump instead becomes something useful, and nobody has to waste space by throwing it away.

Getting Started

Protecting the environment takes is a little bit of effort to remain conscious of the impact that your choices have on the natural world. If you need to get new furniture and you want to protect the environment, look into a set of reclaimed wood furniture from E. B. Mann. Our furniture is beautiful, durable, and most importantly, environment-friendly. Browse our online collection today!