(NAFB.com) – USDA announced $23 million in grants to support transporting hazardous fuels – such as dead or downed trees – from national forests to processing facilities. Through the USDA Forest Service’s Hazardous Fuels Transportation Program, these grants will reduce the hazardous fuels that pose wildfire threats to communities, critical infrastructure and recreation areas. Unlike high-value wood, which is typically used in construction and furniture manufacturing, low-value wood has more limited applications, with fewer facilities able to process it into useful products like soil-enriching materials, renewable energy sources like electricity and heat, and sustainable construction solutions such as cross-laminated timber. The Hazardous Fuels Transportation Program aims to help businesses, non-profits, and state, local and tribal governments make use of the dead trees, fallen branches, and dense undergrowth which would go to waste or fuel catastrophic wildfires. The Forest Service will accept applications through June 20.
