$32 Million to Advance Climate-Smart Timber Construction, Expand Wood Markets

During a visit to the Junction Development Catalyst project site in West Des Moines, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced more than $32 million to fund 2022 wood innovations and community wood grants. Bolstered by $12 million from President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, these grants aim to expand the use of wood products, strengthen emerging wood markets, and support active management to improve forest health and resilience, especially in light of the ongoing nationwide wildfire crisis.

The Junction Development Catalyst project is funded by a wood innovations grant from 2021 and uses wood construction known as mass timber to build affordable housing in West Des Moines. Mass timber is an all-purpose, sturdy and renewable material that can be used in lieu of traditional materials like steel and concrete, with comparable strength and versatility. Wood buildings can store significant amounts of carbon and mass timber construction largely avoids the fossil energy emissions from the manufacturing of many conventional building materials. The mass timber material for the Junction Development Catalyst project was produced in Oregon from small-diameter Douglas fir trees.

"Wood innovation and community wood grants projects like these show us how we can tackle problems like the wildfire crisis and climate change while creating new markets, supporting jobs, building affordable housing and improving conditions on our forests at the same time," said Vilsack. "Removing hazardous trees that would otherwise threaten wildfire-prone communities and having rural, forest-based economies turn those materials into renewable building and energy products, stand as examples of how a clean energy economy is within reach."

Two Pennsylvania entities will receive grants:

• Industry Outreach and Supply Chain Development for Birch Essential Oil Production Facility by Woodside Oils, LLC in Kane, which will receive $250,000.
• Philadelphia Reforestation Hub & Wood Utilization Pilot: Job Training through Life-Cycle Forest Management by PowerCorpsPHL in Philadelphia, which will also receive $250,000.

Receiving a wood innovation grant in Indiana is

• "Production of Wooden School Furniture from Low-Value Hardwoods" by Purdue University in West Lafayette. It will receive $94,498.

The funding announcement included two Minnesota entities:

• Waste Bark to Energy Biomass Burner Project by Mala Mills in Little Falls will receive $884,449
• "Assessment for Scrimber Engineered Wood Products from Northern Minnesota Softwoods" by the University of Minnesota Duluth will receive $48,727.

A South Dakota entity received funding:

• Rapid City-based Forest Products Distributors Inc. will receive a community wood grant of $500,000 for its "Forest Health and Restoration Expansion Project."

The funding includes three projects in Michigan

• "Catalyzing Michigan Mass Timber Manufacture and Demand by Piloting Michigan-Sourced-and-Made Nail-Laminated Timber" being done by Michigan State University, East Lansing, and receiving $252,638.
• "Increasing acceptance of northern hardwood lumber into cross-laminated timber by repurposing low-grade red maple" by Michigan Technological University in Houghton with $247,790.
• The mass-timber flagship building at Adelaide Pointe Marina Leestma Management in Muskegon with $256,856 in support.

An Iowa entity received funding:

• "Forest-to-Farm: An innovative network to diversify wood product markets, encourage sustainable forest management, and enhance water quality" developed by Iowa State University. It will receive $241,216.

One New York project received funding:

• Receiving a wood innovation grant for $151,130 is the Heizomat wood chip boiler installation with integrated Cyclone/ESP emission control for kiln drying and heating of sawmill buildings by Brookside Lumber, Inc. Moravia.

"With continued USDA investment and with the ongoing support of President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this vision is getting closer every day," said Vilsack.

Vilsack also said that funded projects align with President Biden's Executive Order to advance racial equity and support underserved communities. In response to that direction, the USDA Forest Service is supporting the manufacturing base in rural, forest-based communities and funding equipment upgrades to reduce pollution and emissions.

In addition to the $32 million from the USDA Forest Service, the wood innovations and community wood grant programs leverage $93 million in partner funds, bringing the total to more than $125 million for 99 projects. The grants include funds to help Tribes, local governments, and qualified non-profit organizations develop and maintain forest markets critical to maintaining healthy, resilient, and productive forests.

Many of the funded projects will help reduce hazard trees that fuel catastrophic wildfires as envisioned in the new Forest Service 10 Year Strategy to Confront the Wildfire Crisis (https://bit.ly/38wh6mm). These projects cover activities ranging from the development of district wood heating systems and small-scale sawmill operations in Western states, to the continued expansion of markets for mass timber, biochar, and other emerging wood products. A complete list of grants is available on the Forest Service Wood Innovations Program Website (https://bit.ly/3GvLFW5).