Housing gloom effects more than the seller

Condos for sale and homes for sale have not been a popular subject recently.  And you know who is hurting?  Not the sellers, not the agents who can't get the condo sold...but the sawdust industry.  That's right - the sawdust industry has been hurting...bad!  Did you know that sawdust is up 4x from $25/ton to $100/ton since 2006?  You may think to yourself - "who cares? It's just sawdust." But sawdust is one of those commodities that has many functions that you and I seldom hear about.  It is talked about as much as perhaps, the "flugelbinder" (anyone?) but has much more importance.  Sawdust is used for the following: mulch that is compressed into fire logs, insulation, energy production, and many other commercial uses that you nor I will give another second thought to.  But why is there a shortage you may ask?  Well, if you have been following the media recently, you may or may not have heard about the slowed housing sector.  Houses are made from wood which come from trees.  Less trees are being cut down to build less houses which translates to less sawdust.  Interesting - isn't it?  How do you feel about this?  Kind of a catch-22.  For me, I have mixed emotions.  Is sawdust pertinent for our economy?  Are there substitutes for saw dust?  Are scientists working on a sawdust substitute?  Who is really going to suffer from this sawdust shortage?  I'm open to a conversation...