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By Monique Steele, Stephanie Ockhuysen and Penny Miles of 

Producers of local building materials want to be considered for the construction of government buildings, as will now be done with .

The wool sector was feeling buoyant by the Government decision this week to use , where practical and appropriate.

Waitomo farmer and industry leader Janette Osborne said it had created a buzz throughout , billed as the  capital of the world.

Osborne said progress on the issue was a long time coming, as previous working groups had struggled to get traction with MPs.

“We have a lot of people employed in and associated with the wool industry.

“We’ve got a lot of shearers, and we’re really proud of our wool.”

She hoped any extra money in the sector would trickle down through the region’s economy.

But other sectors wanted similar commitments from the Government to use their products in construction.

Mark Ross, chief executive of Wood Processors and Manufacturers, said the industry had talked to the Government for years about including wood products in its builds and would continue to do so.

“We’re really pleased for wool products; this is an excellent outcome for them,” Ross said.

“But we’re highly disappointed that this procurement policy hasn’t been extended to wood products, such as timber and engineered wood products.”

Those products included cross-laminated timber and glulam made from New Zealand timber, which could provide “a real boost” for the industry with more government tenders.

“The wood products that we are talking about are not only renewable but have economic and environmental advantages when it comes to carbon storage and supporting our rural communities.”

Jo Say, of the Hemp Building Association, agreed that the wool decision was positive.

But she said more construction projects could benefit from the environmental, sustainable and carbon-sucking hempcrete.

Hempcrete is made from hemp hurd, the woody fibre inside an industrial hemp plant stem, and has a high R-value, which indicates good insulation performance.

A close-up of the material that makes up hempcrete. Photo / RNZ, Sally Round

“Constructing a house from hempcrete allows for and creates a very stable internal temperature because of its high R-value and its great thermal mass,” Say said.

“Those two together produce this very, very comfortable internal temperature.”

The industrial hemp plant was a great carbon sequester, and the processed hempcrete product had carbon-sucking abilities, she said.

“When it’s made into hempcrete, it’s actually sequestering or sucking carbon out of the atmosphere, so every hempcrete house is actually a carbon sink.”

She believed it was time for New Zealand to transition to healthier, environmentally friendly materials.

“Hempcrete has this hydroscopic capacity, which means that it’s got a self-regulating moisture capacity, so mould and condensation are pretty much not even possible.”

The directive for government agencies covers the use of woollen products in elements of construction or refurbishments such as flooring, insulation, acoustic panels and furnishings.

It would apply to government-owned buildings with new construction works valued at $9 million at most and $100,000 at most for refurbishments.

Associate Agriculture Minister and Rural Communities Minister Mark Patterson said this week that wool was a natural product that was less toxic and more naturally fire-retardant than synthetic or petroleum-based alternatives used in construction.

The procurement guide said the supply would need to be available and meet project requirements and delivery timelines.

The Government is also reviewing its procurement rules in efforts to remove red tape.

New Zealand produces about 120,000 tonnes of wool each year, most of which is strong wool.

Exports of New Zealand wool, carpets and other manufactured wool products earned $549m last year.

The largest export markets were China (earning $77m), India ($66m) and Australia ($81m).

- RNZ