Mr. Robin Lee of Lee Valley tools responds very thoroughly
to a completely punctuation challenged email I sent a day or so ago(!).
How's that for customer service? With Mr. Lee's permission I'm posting
it here:
"Thanks for your note about the plane handles. As one of the founding companies involved in the Woodworkers Alliance for Rainforest Protection, we are acutely aware of the importance of sustainable forestry practices, and environmental impact.
We have been assured by our supplier that the wood used in our plane handles comes from plantation grown trees, and we have no reason to question this.
For many years - we did make our plane handles from maple, and had to trust that it, too, was sustainably harvested or a product of sound forestry practice. Environment is environment after all!
With respect to rainforest preservation - we act directly through donations to organizations that work to purchase and conserve wetlands and rainforest. The products we sell enable to raise this money. For you reference, our donation the past fiscal year to the Nature Conservancy alone was more than $100,000, and has been at or above that level for many consecutive years now. I would suggest that our "ecological footprint" (if you buy into that concept) is non-existent - we're a net "plus", with respect to wood usage. Still, that is not a license to consume indiscriminately.
I do subscribe to the principle that one of the ways to preserve the forest is to give it value, as this promotes responsible management and reforestation - in addition to conservation. If timber has no value, then the rainforest comes under pressure from a different source - the land it covers becomes desirable for agricultural purposes...hungry people may not necessarily be concerned with long-term ecological impact of their choices, especially when their own prospects are decidedly short-term.
While maple is a more readily available wood domestically, the use of figured or non-domestic woods increases the value (perceived or real) of the product being produced. For hand tools, the products we manufacture are tools that will last for generations - the better they look, or more valued they are, the better they will be looked after, and the longer they will be useful. I would submit that high-end hand tools are extremely responsible from an ecological standpoint. Good tools hit all three R's (reduce, re-use, recycle).
I do agree with certification of woods, while at the same time am not sure how practical it is to track completely through the supply chain. It should clearly be controlled at the point of harvest, when it crosses a border, or at initial distribution. While we normally have no way of knowing the source or production practices of every company we deal with down the supply chain, we make every effort to do so. I have no idea where the ore comes from in the plane bodies either - it could be mined by child slave labor for all I know - though we do deal with a reputable and responsible supplier.
You should also know that another of our focuses is the reduction and elimination of packaging wherever possible. At this time - we do not sell any product in those welded plastic clamshells, and will not carry a product if that's the only way we can sell it. Not that this makes us a paragon of virtue - but I use it to illustrate that business is not driven purely by economic decision making. Our dunnage (packing material) is 100% post-consumer fibre, and is designed to be compostable (not just recyclable).
You see, when you choose who you deal with on the basis of any single point or issue, you may be overlooking the much greater scope your decision has. I certainly understand and agree with your concerns, and while I may dispute the utility of a specific approach, or the net effect of a given choice, I do appreciate your position, and respect your advocacy.
We'd sure be pleased to sell you a plane, with or without handle (bubinga (if it actually is) or maple), and have you know that that you're dealing with someone who pays attention to what they're doing, and knows why they're doing it. I think we're worthy of your support - but the choice is always yours.
A bit of a long reply (and it wasn't a canned one) - but I though it important have the insight into our thinking.
Cheers -
Rob Lee
(who'll be driving his hybrid home to a 17 degree house, and shoveling his driveway by hand.... :) )"
