Crews harvesting willow as part of a Shrub Willow Biomass Demonstration at Agens Farm in Boonville on National Bioenergy Day held Oct. 17 of last year. Celtic Energy Farm, a biomass-energy supplier, manages the plot in collaboration with the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry and Latham, N.Y.–based ReEnergy Holdings, LLC. (Photo by Brian P. Whattam, provided by New York Biomass Energy Alliance)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) U.S. Forest Service has awarded the New York State Wood Energy Team a grant of $250,000.
That’s according to the New York Biomass Energy Alliance (NYBEA), which leads the Wood Energy team, along with the Rensselaer–based Empire State Forestry Foundation.
The NYBEA announced the grant funding in a news release distributed Tuesday. The USDA announced the award on July 16, according to the NYBEA website.
The U.S. Forest Service awarded grant dollars to 11 teams, including the New York group.
The New York Wood Energy Team will use the $250,000, which leverages additional state and private investment, to develop and conduct workshops to provide technical, financial, and environmental information; offer preliminary engineering assessments; and conduct community outreach to support the development of wood-energy projects, the NYBEA said.
The U.S. Forest Service, the USDA, and the New York State Green Bank will provide technical assistance to access additional financing for design and construction for successful project applications.
The New York State Wood Energy Team will begin its outreach and education campaign over the next few months in the North Country, the Southern Tier, and the Catskills region, the NYBEA said.
“The investment from the Forest Service will allow for a substantial outreach and education campaign that will support the existing bioenergy industry and New York State programs, such as Renewable Heat NY, by raising awareness and understanding of this local, affordable, renewable source of energy,” Alice Brumbach, executive administrator of the NYBEA, said in the news release.
In addition to the Empire State Forestry Foundation and the New York Biomass Energy Alliance, the New York State Wood Energy Team consists of the Adirondack North Country Association; Clarkson University; New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Southern Tier East Regional Planning Development Board; the State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry in Syracuse; and the Tompkins County Cornell Cooperative Extension, and Mesa Reduction Engineering & Processing of Auburn, among others, according to the NYBEA.
The advisory board to the New York State Wood Energy Team includes the Geddes–based New York Farm Viability Institute; New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets; the New York Farm Bureau; the New York State Wood Products Development Council; Finger Lakes National Forest, and USDA Forest Service, the NYBEA said.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
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