Collins Pine, J&C Enterprises receive Wood Innovation grants
Congressman Doug LaMalfa today announced the four Wood Innovation Grant recipients in his district — two of them in Plumas County: Collins Pine Company in Chester and J&C Enterprises in Crescent Mills.
Following are the recipients and the amounts received:
Collins Pine Company was awarded $250,000 for sawmill upgrades to produce higher-value lumber from fire salvaged logs.
J&C Enterprises was awarded $218,500 to assist its small-scale sawmill operation with wildfire recovery and rebuilding efforts.
Mount Lassen Power Inc. in Westwood was awarded $250,000 for its Mount Lassen Power Wood Energy Expansion – Biomass Power Plant Restart Project.
Yosemite Clean Energy, LLC was awarded $250,000 to be used to support development of a wood waste to biofuel gasification plant in Oroville.
Wood Innovation Grants are administered through the United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and focus on areas including mass timber, renewable wood energy, and technological development that supports fuel reduction and forest management.
“These innovative operations provide aggressive forest management and fuel reduction across Northern California, reducing risks of fires, creating renewable energy, and providing local opportunities for advanced-technological jobs,” said LaMalfa. ” Another added bonus is the removal of burned, dead trees kicks off the regrowth and restoration processes for our forests, helping them to return to health. These awards are a win-win-win.”
“We are excited about this grant from the USDA, which will enable us to make key upgrades to the sawmilling capacity at our Chester operation,” said Galen Smith, strategic planning director of Collins Pine Company. “The Chester sawmill is an essential part of the local economy and of forest rehabilitation efforts in the region. Improving throughput and quality recovery is vital to the restoration effort from the Dixie Fire, as well as the ongoing success of the mill. We are grateful to the USDA for their selection of this project, and to Congressman LaMalfa, former CAL FIRE Chief Ken Pimlott, and the Lassen National Forest for their key support of our efforts.”
Jared Pew of J&C Enterprises said, “We are grateful to receive this funding as it will support us in providing economic activity and lumber to the community as we rebuild from the devastating 2021 Dixie Fire.”
