📋 Tender Overview
Washington D.C. - Oregons U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is investing $9622000 in 17 projects in Oregon to boost the creation of innovative wood products develop more markets for uses of mass timber and renewable wood energy and increase the capacity of wood processing and manufacturing facilities. This federal funding is critical to ensuring the states leadership in the wood products industry while helping to restore healthy forests and reduce wildfire risk.
Oregon has the best wood products in the world and federal funding opportunities like the Wood Innovations Program help keep our state at the forefront of timber innovation while uplifting our rural communities said Merkley who previously introduced his bipartisan to promote the use of mass timber in federal building projects and military construction. These projects are a win-win to develop new Oregon-made wood products and to reduce the risk of high severity wildfires on our forests. I will continue to look for ways to support the wood products industry that is deeply rooted in Oregon.
Our state is leading the way to a better safer and more energy-efficient future in Oregon and nationwide by drawing a robust blueprint for the success of mass timber and renewable wood energy said Wyden. And these 17 federal investments add up to one big win for Oregon when it comes to supporting that goal bringing jobs a better economy and reduced threats of wildfire.
The wood products industry is essential to Oregon and the entire Pacific Northwests economy. Sustainably sourced materials for many types of wood products can improve the resiliency of our forests. For example removal of small diameter trees and brush can help reduce wildfire severity and spread.
The investments for Oregon are part of a broader suite of the U.S. Department of Agricultures USFS Wood Innovations Program grants for public private and non-profit sectors this year.
The 17 projects selected in Oregon are being funded in three Wood Innovations Program grant categories which are as follows:
Wood Innovation Grants
$300000 for Single Widget LLC for production of wood wool cement a fire-resistant and lower-cost building material.
$297300 for the Western Forestry and Conservation Association to establish a logging career training program to expand a critical workforce and advance forest management and hazardous fuels reduction.
$296570 for Base Design and Architecture LLC to expand their use of mass timber in housing production to support active forest management and advance domestic markets for small-diameter timber.
$229199 for Freres Lumber Co. Inc. to enhance the market for biochar or black carbon produced from biomass sources at a plywood manufacturer to support active forest management on national forests in Oregon.
$165000 for KRFF Consulting Engineers to develop resilient design criteria for the International Building Code to accelerate the adoption of mass timber.
$100000 for Timberlab Inc. to provide key data and results of mass timber fire sealing solutions to accelerate adoption of domestic wood products.
$59060 for CedarStone LLC to design and engineer single-family mass timber homes.
$50000 for Wisewood Inc. to provide life cycle assessment to advance biomass energy projects using wildfire fuel reduction materials.
Community Wood Grants
$1 million for JB Wood Recyclers to convert its wood drying kilns from natural gas to wood biomass combustion.
$1 million for Patrick Lumber Manufacturing to upgrade its hardwood sawmill equipment to increase production capacity.
$898701 for Carpentry Plus Inc. to promote and produce local mass timber products
$869172 for Top Hat Mushrooms Inc. to design and install a biomass boiler to recycle biomass and residual wood waste.
Wood Products Infrastructure Assistance Grants
$1 million for the Freres Lumber Co. Inc. for upgrades to mass timber product manufacturing equipment to increase processing capacity.
$1 million for Mt. Hood Forest Products LLC to upgrade its log processing systems to increase the small log processing capacity.
$922018 for the Collins Pine Company to upgrade its log handling and lumber processing operations.
$750000 for Iron Triangle LLC to upgrade its sawmill and lumber manufacturing equipment.
$684980 for Northwest Hardwoods to improve lumber process capacity and increase utilization of underused species of lumber trees.
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