Mass Timber At Parity: Fixing Insurance & Code Bottlenecks - CleanTechnica

The article from CleanTechnica highlights that the main barriers to scaling mass timber construction in Canada have shifted from technical feasibility to insurance costs and inconsistent building code adoption. While engineers have demonstrated that cross-laminated timber (CLT) can produce tall, strong, and safe buildings, insurers currently charge significantly higher premiums—often four to ten times those of concrete—due to limited historical claims data and perceived risks such as fire and water damage during construction. This elevated insurance cost undermines the financial viability of mass timber projects despite their advantages in speed and carbon reduction. Additionally, uneven adoption of the 2020 National Building Code provisions across provinces and municipalities creates regulatory uncertainty and delays, particularly because many jurisdictions still require case-by-case alternative solutions reviews rather than allowing prescriptive, repeatable approvals. To overcome these bottlenecks, the article advocates for normalizing mass timber through data-driven risk assessment and regulatory harmonization. Establishing a national data trust to aggregate claims, fire test results, and performance monitoring would