Asbury Park, New Jersey Passes Resolution Barring Future Use of Uncertified Rainforest Woods for Boardwalk Renovations

ASBURY PARK, NJ — Last night, Asbury Park, NJ Councilwoman Kate Mellina proposed that this historic boardwalk resort town — which gained national notoriety with Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” album — end their use of uncertified tropical hardwoods for boardwalk renovations.

Late in 2001, Asbury Park went out to bid for tropical hardwoods to renovate a third of the six-block-long coastal boardwalk between the famed Convention Hall and the Paramount Theater — a well known and historic amusement area that was highly popular in the 1960s and ’70s but which underwent a major decline in the 1980s.

Rainforest Relief, along with the New Jersey chapter of Sierra Club, opposed the use of unsustainable tropical hardwoods for the renovations, which were being funded by a grant from the state of New Jersey.

A very public campaign ensued that involved many twists and turns and garnered a great deal of media coverage. It eventually ending up in court, as Rainforest Relief sued Asbury Park for failure to adhere to a New Jersey executive order mandating the use of recycled materials when state funds are used.

Even though the court case failed to stop the impending sale, in the eleventh hour, the hardwood supplier — none other than Timber Holdings of Wisconsin, the largest seller of tropical wood decking in the U.S. — made a deal with Aquatic Cellulose, a company contacted by Rainforest Relief, to purchase enough wood for the Asbury Park project. Aquatic Cellulose cuts submerged tropical trees from beneath the flood waters of the Tucurui dam impound lake in Brazil.

However, due to unforeseen circumstances, Aquatic Cellulose was unable to deliver the submerged wood in time and so conventional uncertified tropical ipê was used for the two-block-long renovation.

Rainforest Relief estimates that, for the 100,000 board feet delivered, 1,000 more acres of primary rainforests were logged. To make matters worse, 80% of timber logged in Brazil is cut illegally. At least ten indigenous groups have had members killed in conflicts with loggers.

After the tragic sale, Rainforest Relief continued to work behind the scenes in Asbury Park with a new City Council, toward ending further use of tropical hardwoods for the remaining boardwalk renovations.

Six months ago, Councilwoman Mellina stated to the group that she would not allow uncertified tropical woods to be used again in Asbury Park.

Last night, Councilwoman Mellina followed through on her promise and introduced a resolution calling for an end to the use of uncertified rainforest woods for all future boardwalk renovations and repairs. The resolution passed unanimously.

With this Council resolution, Asbury Park became the ninth waterfront town to have responded to Rainforest Relief campaigns, ending the use of unsustainable tropical hardwoods for boardwalks. Others include Long Beach, California; Long Beach and Greenport in New York; and in New Jersey, Ocean City, Wildwood and Ventnor. Verbal commitments have been made to Rainforest Relief by Philadelphia, Miami Beach, Belmar, NJ and Long Branch, NJ.

These decisions have curtailed the impending or proposed use of over 11 million board feet of unsustainable tropical wood.

Work with Rainforest Relief and help pass a resolution in your town.