Japan-U.S.-Canada Wood Building Standards Meeting Held
Overview
The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries held the Japan-U.S.-Canada Building Experts Committee (BEC) and the Japan-U.S.-Canada JAS Technical Committee (JTC) from September 16 to 18, 2026. This was the first in-person meeting in Japan since 2015. Governments and related organizations from Japan, the United States, and Canada participated and exchanged views on building codes, policies to promote wood construction, and technology development and research. In addition to presentations by each country, participants visited medium- and large-scale wooden buildings in Tokyo.
Key points
- The 2026 Japan-U.S.-Canada Building Experts Committee (BEC) and Japan-U.S.-Canada JAS Technical Committee (JTC) meetings were held.
- This was the first in-person meeting in Japan since 2015.
- Participants discussed trends in building codes, policies for wood construction, and technology development and research.
- On the final day, participants visited medium- and large-scale wooden buildings in Tokyo.
Overview
The meeting was held from Wednesday, September 16, through Friday, September 18, 2026. The previous meeting in Japan was in 2020, but it was held online because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The BEC and JTC were established based on an agreement reached in the 1990 U.S.-Japan Timber Products Trade Negotiations. Government representatives and related organizations from Japan, the United States, and Canada participate to exchange views on building codes and technical information, with the aims of promoting the use of wood materials and spreading safe building methods. Meetings and working groups are held every two years, with the host country rotating among the participating countries.
Details
The venue was the Mita Common Conference Hall. Approximately 30 people participated in person in total, and approximately 40 people observed online in total. Participants from Japan included the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the Building Research Institute, the Japan CLT Association, and the Japan 2x4 Home Builders Association. Government agencies, industry associations, universities, and research institutions from the United States and Canada also participated.
Japan presented on wood use in housing and buildings, promoting off-site wood construction, policies for assessing the life-cycle carbon of buildings, rationalizing building codes to promote wood use, and the status of revisions to Forestry Products JAS.
The United States presented on mass timber adoption, addressing industry and societal challenges related to off-site construction methods, and regional life-cycle assessments of U.S.-produced wood. Canada introduced government policies to promote wood construction, a prefabricated wood building handbook, and efforts to quantify the carbon content of wood products.
On Friday, September 18, participants visited medium- and large-scale wooden buildings in Tokyo. The sites included a high-rise wooden apartment building and the construction site of an office building that, upon completion, will be the largest wooden building in Japan.