By managing the health of the nearby forests local communities can create market opportunities and produce efficient, sustainable energy.

Local communities are sourcing and utilizing forest restoration byproducts for community energy production.

Throughout the zone, local communities are proving that by collaboratively and actively managing the health of the nearby forests, they can use forest restoration byproducts to create market opportunities and efficiently generate energy for heating and powering local schools and municipal buildings.

 Small diameter trees removed during forest restoration, that would otherwise be discarded or burned in the forest, are now being manufactured into condensed wood pellets and bricks. These products are burned in wood-fired boilers to generate thermal energy for the local community.

These byproducts are available due to forest management activities on national forest land. Active management on federal forests in this region is a fairly new practice, so there is plenty of opportunity throughout the zone to further develop wood-based energy markets.

Crucial to the economic success of this regional market is the integrated manufacturing facility and the heat-led biomass boiler. An integrated manufacturing facility limits transportation costs and maximizes value for each piece of wood by processing multiple products and capturing energy production at one local facility.

Heat-led biomass boilers are engineered to first meet the consumer’s heating demands since heating costs are generally much higher than electricity costs in this region. The boilers efficiently capture 70-90% of the total energy in the condensed wood products, which is converted to facility heat. Once the heat demand is met, excess energy goes to generating electricity to help power buildings.

Read more about wood-based energy here. (Download biomass case study pdf)

Photo Credit: Malheur Lumber Facility, Grant County, OR, Dylan Kruse, 2010.