Environmental Stewardship

AT MONARCH PLANK WE ARE DEEPLY COMMITTED TO PROTECTING THE HEALTH OF OUR FORESTS AND OUR CUSTOMERS. OUR WOOD IS SOURCED FROM RESPONSIBLY MANAGED FORESTS IN EUROPE AND THE U.S., AND WE STRIVE TO USE THE MOST ECO-FRIENDLY ADHESIVES AND FINISHES AVAILABLE.

Forests

All of Monarch Plank's raw material comes from verified legal, selectively harvested forestry operations. We source wood only from U.S. and European forests, where forestry laws are strict and well enforced, and from rubber plantations, where the wood is salvaged after the trees no longer produce latex. (Rubberwood, aka Hevea, is dense and extremely stable, providing an excellent substrate for some of our collections.)

 Monarch Plank does not buy Oak from Russia, Ukraine, or other Eastern European countries where illegal and otherwise irresponsible harvesting is currently commonplace. Illegal logging is a huge problem in many of those countries, and particularly in the Russian Far East, where harvesting of Oak and other species in protected areas is reducing the last remaining habitat of the endangered Siberian Tiger. Most of that Oak is being processed in factories in China and sold in the United States, where it is often labeled as ‘European Oak’ even though it has very different characteristics from the Oak of Western Europe.

Environmental considerations aside, we also find that European Oak from Western Europe has a more beautiful grain structure than Oak from Russia and Eastern Europe. Incidentally, claims that Russian Oak is denser than true European Oak because the trees grow more slowly at those northern latitudes are not supported by science. In fact, the Oak species group is unique in that Oak trees grown farther north actually yield wood that is LESS dense.

FSC Certification

For those customers who prefer independent third-party verification that the purchase of their floor supports responsible forestry practices, we offer products certified by a non-profit organization, the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC). FSC-certified flooring is available by Special Order and is not available on all items. Please inquire for specifics and lead times.

Adhesives

At Monarch Plank, we believe that protecting our customer's indoor air quality is a moral obligation. All Monarch Plank products are made with ‘No Added Urea-Formaldehyde’ (NAUF), and are of course CARB Phase II compliant, easily meeting the CARB standard of 0.05ppm. Our lumber-core collections are made exclusively with a formaldehyde-free adhesive (NAF). Most Monarch Plank collections, including all of our unfinished products, are now FloorScore certified. FloorScore is a third-party certification system that tests for a wide range of VOC's. We are confident that all of our products already meet the FloorScore standards and are in the process of attaining that certification on the few remaining collections that are not yet certified. Please check the individual product Specification Sheet for details.

While we are careful to ensure that all of our factories are using the latest in zero-VOC and ultra-low-VOC adhesives, we also take the extra step of conducting periodic tests on random samples from our inventory, which we send to certified American test laboratories. We are proud of the steps we take to ensure the health of our customers and are happy to provide copies of those test reports upon request.

Click here for more information on formaldehyde and Monarch Plank's commitment to you.

Coatings

Monarch Plank uses two types of coatings, each with different environmental attributes:

• UV-Cured Urethane - All urethane finishes are made with petroleum-based ingredients, but because they are 100% solids and are cured in ultra-violet ovens at the factory, UV urethanes are completely inert and will not off-gas at all in the home. Monarch Plank uses the most technologically advanced urethane finish systems available, from companies like Bona of Sweden and Treffert of Germany. UV urethane finishes can be cleaned with odorless, solvent-free cleaners.
• UV-Cured Oil – Not to be confused with traditional oil-based (solvent-based) finishes, UV Cured Oil finishes made primarily with renewable natural ingredients such as sunflower oil, soy oil, and carnauba wax. These finishes contain little or no petroleum-based ingredients. Like UV-cured urethanes, UV-cured oils will not off-gas in the home. UV-cured oils are maintained with the same zero-VOC cleaning and maintenance products as Oxidative Natural Oils. While some of the products used for periodic maintenance may have mild odors, the Woca products recommended by Monarch Plank are VOC-free. Woca (Denmark) is a recognized leader in the manufacture of natural oil wood finishes.

LEED® Certification

LEED® is a green building certification system that recognizes buildings that are constructed to a certain set of green standards. If you are working on a LEED® project and have questions about how wood flooring can help you achieve LEED® credits, please don't hesitate to contact us. We have an experienced LEED® expert on staff, available to provide free consulting. 

Monarch Plank's flooring products can help a project earn these LEED credits:

IEQc4.4 – Low Emitting Materials – made with no added urea-formaldehyde

MRc7 – Certified Wood – made with FSC-certified wood

Note: not all Monarch Plank products qualify for these LEED credits. Please check each product’s Specification Sheet for details.

For further information about any of the environmental attributes of Monarch Plank's flooring products, please feel free to contact us directly.