However, due to the commercial scarcity of some domestic woods, resorting to auction sites such as Ebay or Etsy may be the only way to obtain some desirable domestic, or in some cases exotic imported, species that are not routinely commercially harvested. The potential risks of buying in these marketplaces have to be balanced against the desire to work with a specific species of wood. That is inherently an individual decision.
I also realize that many, if not most, wood workers do not have endangered species lists memorized, therefore I think it worthwhile and important to do even a small amount of research before purchasing any lumber, domestic as well as imported, to be certain of the potential impact you are having, even in a small way, on threatened or endangered populations. This information is easy to come by and takes only minutes to locate through any Internet search engine, including those you can access on your phone as you are standing in the lumber yard or store. Unfortunately, you simply cannot count on a vendor to tell you a product they are selling is endangered.
Health Hazards
Parts of the Pistachio tree and nut have been reported to cause skin irritation. However, that said, there have been no direct reports of Pistachio wood itself causing either toxic or allergic effects.
Contaminated or poorly processed Pistachio nuts are a source of aflatoxins, a known carcinogen, but again, this is not a concern associated with the wood itself.
However, the long-term negative health effects of exposure to sawdust of any species are well documented.
It is important to remember that although many people may, or may not, be sensitive to any given wood, the only experience that truly counts is your own, so use reported side effects as guidance but not as a substitute for cautious and safe practices.
Appropriate protective equipment is therefore always recommended when working with this, or any other, wood, exotic or domestic, unless you have worked with the species before and are certain you are not sensitive to it.
Complete information about health hazards associated with a wide variety of exotic hardwoods is available from The Wood Database. Additional information about how to best use a dust collection system and personal protective equipment, such as respirators, can also be found through this excellent and comprehensive resource.
Fortunately, I experienced no negative side effects when working with Pistachio.
My Personal Experiences
As I noted above, I purchased rough turned Pistachio bowl blanks that had been boiled and then allowed to air dry for as much as five years. The vendor from whom I purchased these bowl blanks is an avid wood turner himself, as well as operating an artisanal lumber mill, and he reported extensive experience in working with Pistachio wood. He told me that while he occasionally had green Pistachio wood available that it was very difficult to process green without extensive checking so he was reluctant to sell it in green condition. He had rough turned and boiled literally hundreds of bowl blanks and all of them were for sale although none were listed on a web-based store. I conducted my purchases exclusively through e-mail based on a selection of rough turned bowls blanks that he photographed and e-mailed to me.
The blanks that I purchased range in size from about 8” to 10” round and 2-3” deep. They are all in very rough condition and don’t look like much to be honest, but that is fine and I wouldn’t expect them to look any different given their rough turned and boiled condition.
I don’t personally have any experience with boiling rough turned blanks as a method of drying and processing green wood so I won’t comment further other than to say that the method seemed to have worked well for Pistachio wood. I would also say that from what I have read that anyone contemplating this method should research it thoroughly BEFORE attempting it to ensure that they avoid potentially serious injury.