Countdown to CARB, brought to you by panel producers Timber Products Company and SierraPine, will provide you with the information you need to know to get ready for the new CARB regulations. Each issue will focus on news and updates relevant to your segment of the wood products pipeline, and show you what companies are doing to get themselves positioned for compliance. This first issue looks at some recent developments with certification, imports and market conditions.

Look for future editions of Countdown to CARB throughout the rest of 2008. For more information or for specific CARB-certified material questions, contact info@timberproducts.com or info@sierrapine.com.

CARB Web Site to Post Clarifications, Updates on Sell-Through Provisions
If you are a wood products manufacturer, distributor, fabricator, importer or retailer, the CARB rule might impact your business. To find out more about this groundbreaking legislation, the CARB Web site is a good resource for basic information and the latest clarifications to be issued. For the next several months, we expect CARB to issue “advisory” notices. These are updates, clarifications, or possible changes.

One area of confusion has been the sell-through provisions, which provide time for products made before Jan. 1, 2009, to work their way through the manufacturing-to-retail commerce chain. For the latest information on this part of the rule, go to:
www.arb.ca.gov/toxics/compwood/implementation/sell_thruadvisory.pdf

Distributors to Face Heavy Documentation Rules
According to CARB, distributors are companies that distribute regulated composite panels or finished goods made with regulated composite panels, but not to consumers. They do not alter the product that is shipped from the manufacturer.

Distributors will have a significant documentation obligation under the CARB rule, as well as other requirements. If you are a distributor, your best source for detailed information is: http://www.carbrule.org/DistributorObligationsunderCARB.pdf

Expect Wild Market and Supply Swings in Q4
With the CARB rule beginning to take effect on Jan. 1, 2009, expect to see some unusual conditions in the market and product supply. For example, it is expected that foreign manufacturers of non-compliant engineered flooring will flood the Los Angeles market with product arriving before the CARB start date. That will give retailers 12 months to sell the non-compliant product.

Importers Rush to Find CARB Certified Wood
CARB defines importers as any company that imports regulated composite wood panels for sale or use in California.

So far, more than 40 mills have been CARB certified in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and around the world. The number of CARB authorized certifying agencies is growing. For up to date information on import certifiers, go to:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/toxics/compwood/certifiers.htm

Retailer or Not? Be Careful
Retailers are companies that sell regulated composite panels or finished goods made with regulated composite panels to consumers. Companies like IKEA, Home Depot, Target and Ethan Allen fall into this category.

Many distributors have an area in their business where customers can buy or pick up material. We have learned that some California distributors plan to set up a separate, expanded "retail" operation prior to January. Their plan would be to move all non-compliant inventories into the retail operation before that date, giving the company 12 months to sell it to the market. Under the retailer sell-through provisions, CARB has a clear definition of what a retailer is and this plan may not meet CARB requirements.

Timber Products, SierraPine CARB Certification Update
On Sept. 24, Timber Products Company announced that its hardwood plywood and particleboard mills in Medford, Ore., have been certified to meet the California Air Resources Board (CARB) requirements.

With this designation, Timber Products becomes one of the first U.S. hardwood plywood manufacturers to have its entire product line CARB certified.

The audit process was conducted by the Composite Panel Association, a U.S. agency authorized by CARB as an official third-party certification body.

The company's mills in Grants Pass, Ore., and Corinth, Miss., are expected to be CARB- certified in the next 30 to 60 days, according to Timber Products Vice President Roger Rutan.

Read the press release on this full announcement at www.timberproducts.com/newsroom.

SierraPine, a manufacturer of composite panels with seven manufacturing facilities in California, Oregon, and Georgia, currently offers several Phase I CARB certified products, such as:

• Particleboard made at its Springfield, Ore., Adel, Ga. and Martell, Calif. facilities
• MDF products made in Medford, Ore., and Rocklin, Calif.
• TMDF made in Rocklin, Calif.

In addition, SierraPine produces the following Phase II CARB materials:

• Encore and Encore MR particleboard produced in Springfield, Ore., Adel, Ga. and Martell, Calif.

For a complete list of SierraPine's CARB certified panels, click here.

Next issue of Countdown to CARB coming Oct. 24, 2008