# Home Depot Plywood: The Impact on Ecuador’s Rainforests

- Link: https://greenlivingguy.com/2022/05/home-depot-plywood-the-impact-on-ecuadors-rainforests/
- Published: 2022-05-20T11:53:28-04:00
- Author: greenlivingguy

## Home Depot Plywood

In the runup to Home Depot’s May 19 shareholder meeting, the advocacy group [Friends](https://greenlivingguy.com/2019/05/kids-saving-rainforests-planting-trees-over-world/)
of the Chocó launches a campaign. The campaign goal is to highlight the company’s
practice of carrying Sandeply [plywood](https://greenlivingguy.com/2012/01/unlocking-sustainable-forestry-the-sfi-forest-standard-in-maine/).
It’s a Home Depot exclusive that comes from Ecuadorian manufacturer Endesa-Botrosa.
The plywood is deforesting primary [tropical rainforests](https://greenlivingguy.com/2012/01/unlocking-sustainable-forestry-the-sfi-forest-standard-in-maine/)
in western Ecuador’s Chocó region. Just 3% of western Ecuador’s original forest 
remains intact.

The campaign includes a new film documenting the devastating impacts of Endesa-Botrosa’s
old-growth logging operations. Extracting plywood-veneer wood in the Chocó, a full-
page ad in yesterday’s _Atlanta Journal Constitution_, mobile billboards in and 
around Home Depot’s Atlanta headquarters that read “Learn how The Home Depot is 
destroying the rainforest,” and a detailed report about the impacts of Sandeply 
on the Chocó to Home Depot [corporate leaders](https://greenlivingguy.com/2019/12/the-home-depot-goal-going-greener-room-growth/),
board members, and investors.  The film and other documents can be viewed on [http://www.homedepot-deforestation](http://www.homedepot-deforestation).
org.

![Home Depot plywood](https://i0.wp.com/greenlivingguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/
05/maksim-shutov-AcdCWfbCI1g-unsplash.jpg?resize=420%2C280&quality=52&ssl=1 "Home
Depot plywood")

### Home Depot Uses Plywood that Destroys Rainforests

Home Depot’s sale of Sandeply contributes to the deforestation of one of the world’s
most biodiverse rainforests, according to an ad in the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
This [sourcing practice](https://greenlivingguy.com/2012/01/forest-friendly-wood/)
also leads to increased carbon emissions, destruction of endangered wildlife habitats,
and the devastation of the Indigenous Chachi community’s forest home. The ad claims
that Rodgers raised this issue with [Home Depot’s](https://greenlivingguy.com/2024/04/sustainable-homes-for-green-living/)
CEO Craig Menear and VP of Sustainability Ron Jarvis four years ago. However, it
appears that no changes have been made since then. The deforestation continues, 
and Sandeply products can still be found on Home Depot’s shelves.

### Supply Chains

[Home Depot’s](https://greenlivingguy.com/2024/07/bulb-recycle-at-the-home-depot-a-sustainable-solution/)
decision to include products linked to deforestation in their supply chain isn’t
just ethically questionable or contradictory to their sustainable sourcing goals–
it’s a major strategic misstep. The Friends of the Chocó have pointed out to Home
Depot’s leadership that [sourcing](https://greenlivingguy.com/2019/12/the-home-depot-goal-going-greener-room-growth/)
Sandeply from Endesa-Botrosa puts the company at significant risk, both in terms
of reputation and compliance.

What’s more, this choice could hurt Home Depot’s [competitive edge](https://greenlivingguy.com/2010/03/eco-options-at-the-home-depot-interview-with-cate-franklyn/).
Their rival, Lowe’s, has implemented more comprehensive sourcing policies. Policies
that explicitly exclude products from deforested areas like the Chocó. Home Depot’s
policies, on the other hand, don’t have such clear-cut restrictions. This gap in
policy not only raises ethical concerns. However, it could also [impact Home Depot’s standing in the market](https://greenlivingguy.com/2023/04/china-ev-sales-slump-impacts-market-dynamics/).
That’s especially as consumers become increasingly aware of and concerned about 
environmental issues.

By continuing this practice, Home Depot isn’t just falling short on its environmental
responsibilities. For it’s potentially setting itself up for future challenges in
an increasingly eco-conscious marketplace. This situation highlights the growing
importance of sustainable practices in business strategy. Especially where environmental
responsibility and business success are becoming increasingly intertwined.

## The Report

The report urges [Home Depot](https://greenlivingguy.com/2015/02/gulf-coast-leaders-urge-end-to-constant-storm/)
to stop carrying Sandeply and end its supply relationship with Endesa-Botrosa. However,
if that is not possible, it calls for souring sustainable 100% plantation-grown 
alternatives.  Moreover. it calls on Home Depot to improve its [sustainability](https://greenlivingguy.com/2022/04/3-ways-to-increase-your-sustainability-awareness/)
policies and supply chain management. In addition, the goal is for Home Depot to
no longer carry products that destroy primary [tropical rainforests.](https://greenlivingguy.com/2018/07/sambazon-and-rainforest-trust-preserve-more-than-126000-acres-of-critical-amazon-rainforest-reserve/)

[Atlanta, GA – May 16, 2022]