Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud said tests on lesser-used species of wood have found them to be comparable to several overused species and as such their use would be promoted this year.

According to the Government Information Agency (GINA) six species from about 1000 varieties of wood in Guyana are being over-exploited. These include the bullet wood, greenheart and purpleheart.  In the light of this the Guyana Forestry Marketing Council (GFMC) and the International Timber Organization (ITTO) conducted tests on 15 lesser-used species to determine their properties. The lesser-used species include Limonimonaballi, Huruasa, Sarebebeballi, Suya, Black Kakaralli and Kautaballi.

Persaud on Tuesday confirmed that the results of the tests showed that at least eight of the 15 had properties that are comparable to or even better than greenheart. He said too he has charged the GFC to promote the use of these species locally and internationally and to explore the potential of other lesser used species. Local furniture manufacturers have indicated their interest in using some of the lesser-used species, GINA said.

According to the release the GFMC/ITTO project entailed three main components including testing of the lesser used species at laboratories overseas, promotional activities and training of forestry stakeholders on the wood properties.