Type and Duration
FFF-Förderprojekt, July 2023 until February 2026Coordinator
Craft & StructureMain Research
Sustainable Planning and ConstructionDescription
About 41% of the principality of Liechtenstein is covered by forest. (Amt für Statistik, 2020) Thusthe forest is one of the most important landscape features of the country and serves as the
source of the material wood. With the growing tendency towards finding sustainable solutions
in architecture, this natural and local material is becoming a very important player in the field of
construction. However out of the wood harvested annually in Liechtenstein, about 90% are used
directly as an energy source. (Amt für Wald, Natur und Landschaft, 2012) Numbers in Switzerland
are comparable. To add, as of today, the main constructional wood, used in the industry,
are coniferous species. In fact, they make up about 70% of the forest in Liechtenstein with the
spruce being the most common one with about 51% .(Amt für Wald, Natur und Landschaft,
2012)
However, forest structures could change drastically very soon, as temperatures are rising due to
the climate change. This endangers many coniferous species. Predictions for the forest in Liechtenstein
have stated, that in 2070 the spruce will mostly vanish completely in low altitudes, only
being able to survive in the higher regions. (Frehner et al., Juli/2021) Thus in this research project,
solutions for an endangered wood industry facing climate changes and the decline of many
coniferous species, will be investigated. This also puts up the question, weather the prolonging
of the life cycle of wood before ending up as an energy source, could show a more resourceful
handling with the local material. A rising urge to analyze the usage of the less endangered hardwood
species for constructional purposes can therefore be combined with a more circular application
of wood.
Practical Application
In 2020, 18,784 m3 of local wood (logs incl. branches and crown material) were chopped andused in Liechtenstein In the previous year, the figure was 22,790 m3. Less wood was thus harvested
in 2020 than in 2019. Of the 18,784 m3 of wood, 13,586 m3 were used for energy purposes
only, 4'513 m3 as log wood and 685 m3 as industrial wood. Thus, the share of energy
wood (incl. branch and crown material) of the total wood utilization was 72.3% in 2020. In addition
to the wood removed from the forest, in 2020, 425 m3 of wood was left behind (non-utilized
wood). In the previous year, this figure was 531 m3. (Amt für Statistik, 2020) In Switzerland
the numbers are comparable.
However, in the current state of having to face shortages of resources, as well as being in the middle of a climate crises already, it is crucial to push local and sustainable materials such as wood, to be used in the construction sector. Thus, with this research project, the goal is to bring back the awareness for the named problems. Its implication on the practice is therefor quite direct as architects but also other figures in the construction sector should be informed about new possibilities by using hardwood as a construction material and not relying completely on conifers. Furthermore, the research field of hardwood has not been investigated a lot, as of today, and still has a lot of potential.For instance at the ETH Zürich,first research projects and product testing with hardwood have started as already mentioned earlier. However, compared to the depth of research and possibilities of building with conifers, many fields of interest have yet to be discovered.
Reference to Liechtenstein
As this research project is partly based on data about the Liechtenstein forest and should includemany interviews with local people that work in the wood industry such as Daniel Örtig,
Leiter Forstamt Liechtenstein, der Holzkreislauf Liechtenstein, Christoph Frommelt, owner of
the Zimmerei Frommelt, the impact can also be seen locally. Due to the climatic changes, it is
clear that hardwood products and usage will also be a future scenario for Liechtenstein, thus
this research project should impact local architects, carpenters, forest workers or any included
people in the wood industry of the country, to rethink current situations. This could lead to an
increased interest in the background of local wood, as well as pushing the creating of infrastructure for the processing of hardwood, instead of only relying on conifers.
