Ebony: Dark Outlook For Dark Woods?
Whether conscious of it or not, just about the entire world loves dark colored woods—and the darker, the better. So, what happens when you mix a strong global demand with small and slow-growing trees?
Issues.
Consider these words by the co-founder of Taylor Guitars in his talk on ebony back in 2012, who articulates the issue very well:
“Ebony has been a wood that for two, or three, or four hundred years, we’ve gone into countries, and we’ve used the ebony until it’s all gone. Literally. Then we move into another country, and we take their ebony till it’s all gone. Why do I say ‘we’?—because ebony isn’t cut in Africa for use by Africans. Ebony is cut in Africa to be sold to people like us, to make things like guitars out of. That’s the simple truth of the matter.”
-Bob Taylor
Why should I care?
Maybe you shouldn’t. But at the very least, everyone who buys, uses or makes ebony wood products should be aware of the situation, and make informed, conscientious decisions. Maybe you’ve only used a little bit of ebony here and there, but just remember this: the world is filled with small bits and pieces of ebony. This is precisely what ebony is used for. No one is going to make an enormous office table out of solid ebony, but that same office table may very well feature a custom inlay made of ebony. More often than not, ebony is used bit by bit, and you might be the one using that next bit.
(On a personal note, I am a woodworker myself, and yes, I have bought and used ebony for a variety of projects in the past. Was I aware of the scope of the situation surrounding ebony at the time? No. Knowing what I know now, would I still buy and use ebony? Maybe… but I would definitely think twice before I went ahead with it for a project. See alternatives below.)
The Issue
The issue isn’t rocket science: ebony trees (in the Diospyros genus) are generally small and slow growing. Demand for ebony wood is very high: it’s a high quality hardwood that’s very hard, very strong, and most of all, very black. Low supply and high demand means prices go way up. These high prices, coupled with the fact that a lot of the world’s ebony grows in third-world countries, only exacerbates the problem. (Take, for example, the illegal logging that occurred in Madagascar, especially in the early 2000s, where people were literally risking life and limb to get rosewood and ebony logs smuggled out from protected national parks.)
Ideally, most modern industrialized nations harvest wood in such a way that it is sustainable. Certain areas are logged at certain rates to ensure that there will still be trees around to harvest and use for tomorrow. But given ebony’s slow growth rate, and the current rate of harvest, it’s easy to see why there’s a dark outlook for these dark woods.
