USDA 2007 Farm Bill Proposals - US Department of Agriculture

FOREST WOOD TO ENERGYRecommendation In BriefInitiate a new $150 million wood-to-energy program over 10 years to accelerate developmentand use of new technologies to more productively utilize low-value woody biomass resources,offsetting the demand for fossil fuels and improving the forest health.ProblemPublic, private, and tribal forests contain enormous amounts of biomass. In many cases, woodybiomass poses waste disposal problems, degrades forest health, and adds to fuel loads thatcontribute to uncharacteristic wild land fires. Millions of tons of woody biomass are availableand must be disposed of at high costs. Because little commercial value is associated with woodgenerated by thinning operations or wood damaged by forest fires, insects, and disease, thiswood is generally not reused or recycled in a sustainable manner.This unique opportunity was not overlooked at USDA Farm bill Forums. For example, Danielfrom Texas requested that the farm bill “invest in woody biomass technologies, including the useof woody biomass for energy, transportation fuels and other value added products. This wouldhelp to recover much of the lost infrastructure in logging and timber communities throughout theUnited States, while at the same time promoting healthy forests, reducing our dependence onforeign oil, creating jobs, and most importantly providing for national security.” And Dean fromMinnesota echoed, “Agroforestry can contribute to energy independence through production ofbiomass energy from both herbaceous and woody perennials which also provide environmentalbenefits…The next farm bill should provide temporary support to biomass energy programs andother agroforestry systems until such systems become self-sustaining.”Recommended SolutionThe Administration proposes to establish a new Wood to Energy Program. This new initiativewould:1. Accelerate practical commercial development of cellulosic ethanol conversion from a diverserange of biobased products;2. Increase use of Forest Service knowledge and technical capacity to advance research andcommercialization of woody biomass as a transportation fuel;3. Develop new or improved processes for wood to ethanol conversion, small scale wood toenergy technology, biobased products from low-valued woody biomass sources, andtechnologies for separating high-value from low-value wood for primary and secondaryprocessing; and4. Apply new technologies, such as nanotechnology and biorefining, to product development.The Forest Service would engage forest-based communities, entrepreneurs, small businesses,along with private investors in the implementation of this program to leverage Forest Servicestaff and other critical resources. The fiscal year 2006 Interior Appropriations Conference Reportprovides up to $5 million for this type of biomass research grants; we propose supplementingthis investment with $15 million annually in mandatory spending.USDA 2007 Farm Bill Proposals Page 139 of 183