Sustainable tree growth covers made in Wuppertal - that is innovative and arouses media interest. For example, the Westdeutsche Zeitung newspaper Wuppertal has now reported on our product. What exactly is it about?
Droughts, bark beetles and forest fires - in Germany, but also worldwide, ever larger areas of forest are being destroyed. Reforestation programs are therefore essential. But there are two problems. On the one hand, the young trees have to be protected against browsing by game and competition from other plants. Traditionally, plastic growth covers are used for this purpose, but on the other hand, their remains remain in the forest for decades and decompose into dangerous microplastics.
With growth covers based on the natural product SAVUTEC Vulkanfiber, we have developed the right solution for this. The covers are made from renewable raw materials and decompose without leaving any residue. Until then, they reliably protect the young trees from the above-mentioned hazards and ensure an optimal supply of nutrients.
https://sachsenroeder.com/wp-content/uploads/zeitung.png3581030pixel-adminhttps://sachsenroeder.com/wp-content/uploads/sachsenroeder_logo_mit_claim.svgpixel-admin2023-09-11 14:44:172023-09-11 14:45:22WZ reports about growth covers from vulcanized fiber
This is how science and industry go hand in hand for a sustainable future: Our development work in the research project "TheForestCleanup" has now been recognized with the "Excellent Technology Transfer" award from the Reutlingen Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen. The project was developed jointly with the Rottenburg University of Applied Forest Sciences, whose Professor Dr. Sebastian Hein accepted the award on behalf of all project partners.
We are very proud to have convinced the jury from industry and science with our innovative tree protection cover. It solves a growing problem, because the need for reforestation in German forests is increasing every year as a result of drought months and bark beetles. Until now, conservative tree protection covers made of plastic were used to protect young trees, the residues of which remained in the forest as waste for decades. Thanks to the new covers based on our SAVUTEC® vulcanized fiber, we can now reforest large areas without unnecessarily polluting nature.
Sustainable raw material in the furniture industry: vulcanized fiber. In this article, we explain why vulcanized fiber is a real game changer in this context as a completely natural plastic alternative based on cellulose.
https://sachsenroeder.com/wp-content/uploads/moebel_sa.jpg3581030pixel-adminhttps://sachsenroeder.com/wp-content/uploads/sachsenroeder_logo_mit_claim.svgpixel-admin2022-08-09 14:31:002024-07-11 12:46:09Natural, renewable and sustainable: volcanic fiber as a material for high-quality furniture
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Dry summers and mild winters have severely damaged native forestsinmany areas of Germany. As a result of this constellation, tree diseases are spreading and bark beetles are also multiplying rapidly, forcing entire forest stands to be cut downto containthem. According to a Article from the January 2020 issue of Die Zeit 250,000 hectares offorest in Germany aredamaged, affecting millions of trees.Since the forest, in turn,is a precious treasure both ecologically as a habitat for animals and part of our weather system, and economically as an industrial space,the large-scale reforestation projectsmentioned are absolutely necessary.
Conventional growth covers - the plastic problem of reforestation
In our domestic forests, mainly growth covers made of PP, PE, HDPE up to PVC plastics are used, which have to be collected again after their average application time of several years. You can read about the damage this causes in the HFR article. It is true that there are already covers based on bioplastics that are supposed to be oxo-biodegradable. These are materials such as polypropylene with the addition of, for example, starch from renewable raw materials. However, these products already decompose into environmentally harmful particulate plastic components such as persistent and mobile microplastics during the use phase. Nevertheless, growth covers are of essential importance. They protect young trees from browsing by game and competing flora and thus make an important contribution to reforestation projects.
In order to meet both challenges, i.e. reducing plastic waste in forestry and supporting reforestation projects, experts are trying to use substitute materials instead of plastic for growth covers in the future.
These plastic substitutes must have two properties.
They must be bio-based, which means: they must consist partly or preferably entirely of plant-based and thus renewable raw materials. They must also be biodegradable. This means that the substitutes decompose completely under natural conditions by microorganisms toCO2 and water within a reasonable period of time. Both properties are deliberately named separately, because a biodegradable material does not necessarily have to be bio-based. Forestry must therefore focus on materials that combine both properties.
Grow covers made from biodegradable materials
The property "biodegradable" requires closer examination. Various test standards are available to prove this suitability. These standards define certain environmental conditions such as industrial composting, home composting or composting in the soil. The test standards of the OECD 301 (A-F) and OECD 302 (A-C) test series, as well as the DIN EN13432/DIN EN 14995 standard, have already been established for this purpose.
Biobased and biologically degradable without residues: the vulcanised fibre
Vulkanfiber offers a way out of the plastic dilemma in German forests. This is completely plastic-free and consists of 100 percent renewable raw material cellulose in the form of high-quality special paper. In particular, certain cellulose is used for this purpose. The special cellulose fibres required for this come exclusively from certified forest management (FSC / PEFC). The material is also extremely hard, tough and wear-resistant, so that it guarantees sufficient protection against browsing by game and competing flora.
In the area of biodegradability, too, vulcanized fiber is convincing all along the line and degrades completely and without residues in home compost. We are already developing the first prototypes of growth covers made of vulcanised fibre as part of a research project funded by the Agency for Renewable Resources (FNR) and other project partners in order to pave the way for more sustainable and plastic-free forestry in Germany.
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