A shift towards a greater use of wood compared with other building materials lowers energy requireme

In an study by Andrew H Buchanan & S.Bry Levine 1999, "Wood-based building materials and atmospheric carbon emissions", published in Environmental Science & Policy, found that the use of wood-based building materials compared to other building materials resulted in lower carbon emissions.

Buchanan & Levine recommended a shift towards a greater use of wood-based building materials compared to other building materials and noted that "As a corollary, a shift from wood to non-wood materials would result in an increase in energy requirements and carbon emissions."

However, these recommendations would have greater implications for the global forestry and construction industries and they suggested that "any increases in wood use must be accompanied by corresponding increases in areas of forest being managed for long term sustained yield production."

For further reading you can find the article here.