The green credentials of wood

Using wood as a heating fuel really highlights the importance and complexity of the question: ‘Is it green?’. In terms of sustainability it arguably scores 10 out of 10; we can always grow more of it. But in terms of global warming it may only score 3 or 4. It is argued that burning wood has a net zero CO impact, as when it is burnt it only emits the CO that the tree absorbed when it was growing. The problem is one of timing. All the the tree absorbed in the years, the decades, it was growing is released in the few minutes it takes to burn.