[Forest_Biomass] US Endowment for Forestry and Communities RFP

[WEEKS Kevin]

Forest Biomass News list members:
This information is forwarded at the request of the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities regarding their announcement of an RFP in woody biomass energy research.

Kevin Weeks
Oregon Department of Forestry
(503) 945-7427
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January 5, 2010-Greenville, SC-Biomass Focus of Request for Pre-proposals


The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities (the Endowment) today announced its first

Request for Pre-proposals (RFP) for 2010. "Our early work in the area of woody biomass

suggests that there are at least two near-term areas within the wood-to-energy value chain

where the Endowment might be able to provide further service," said Endowment President

Carlton Owen. "This RFP seeks concepts to rapidly move promising local-scale wood-to-energy

conversion technologies from lab to demonstration and a separate work track that would

identify and test new models for wood procurement for energy that would also serve to further

retention of working forests."

This RFP constitutes the Endowment's fourth investment in the woody biomass arena. In

addition to a review of forest business clustering that included the concept of waste-to-product,

the Endowment and some of its partners are nearing completion of the continent's most

comprehensive data source on woody biomass using facilities at industrial- and community scales

as well as a state-of-the-technology report.

About three percent of North American energy production comes from woody biomass and most

of that is produced by traditional forest products companies - lumber and pulp & paper mills --

for their own use. While there are legitimate concerns about expanded wood-to-energy use on

forest sustainability and competitive threats to traditional forest products markets, there are

many areas of the country where small-diameter, low-value, dead and dying wood far exceeds

any current market demand. Without robust markets for these lower-value products, many

landowners are left with few economically viable options to manage their forests while threats to

overall health of the forest from disease, fire, and insects increase.

Owen noted that there are few areas that cut as broadly across the Endowment's entire "theory

of change" as does the potential of distributed, appropriately-scaled wood-to-energy conversion.

"If done correctly it can enhance the competitive position of traditional forest industry, expand

domestic production of a needed carbon-neutral energy product, provide additional sources of

income for forest landowners, and increase options for proper management and retention of

healthy working forests," says Owen. "That's not just a win-win but a win-win-win-win."

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For more information contact:

Carlton Owen, President & CEO, U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities

864-233-7646, carlton at usendowment.org

The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities (the Endowment) is a not-for profit

public charity working collaboratively with partners in the public and private sectors to

advance systemic, transformative and sustainable change for the health and vitality of the

nation's working forests and forest-reliant communities www.usendowment.org .