Approved six-storey wooden buildings

Ontario builders will be allowed to construct six-storey buildings out of wood starting in 2015, the province announced Tuesday.

The limit for wood-framed buildings has been four storeys. Politicians from Northern Ontario have pushed for the change for years, hoping that it’ll spur demand for northern lumber.

Advocates of wood construction say that rules requiring steel or concrete skeletons for taller buildings are obsolete in an era of “engineered” wood products, now that layers of wood can be laminated together to make beams and joists whose properties are as predictable as any steel beam.

“It is gratifying to see Ontario listening to the needs of Northern communities with today’s announcement,” said Liberal Natural Resources Minister Bill Mauro, who represents Thunder Bay-Atikokan. “The goal of increasing the use of wood in Ontario’s construction industry has been achieved.”

Critics say cutting down trees isn’t environmentally friendly and masonry buildings last a lot longer.

Also, obviously, wood burns in a way that concrete and steel don’t. Modern sprinklers and fire-resistant walls minimize the risks from fires in completed buildings, although they are more vulnerable during construction, several studies have found. British Columbia has allowed six-storey wood structures since 2009 and they haven’t proven to be more dangerous than other kinds of buildings.

Stairways in such buildings will have to be made of fireproof materials, the government said in a written announcement, and roofs will have to be fire-resistant.

Besides creating demand for Ontario lumber, wooden buildings are supposed to fill a tricky gap in urban construction. Lots of people seem to be content to see buildings of about six storeys added to downtown neighbourhoods where cities like Ottawa and Toronto want more people to live, but those buildings are rarely cost-effective for developers if they have to be made out of relatively expensive concrete and steel.