FLA Joins Coalition Calling for Expanded Markets for Low-Value Wood
Washington, D.C. – The Forest Landowners Association (FLA) has joined a broad, diverse coalition of forestry, agriculture, conservation, and rural business organizations urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to modernize and expand the treatment of woody biomass under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in a recent coalition letter.
The letter, led by the National Alliance of Forest Owners, calls on EPA to use its existing authority to update outdated federal guidance that limits market access for forest-based biomass, such as low-value wood, mill residuals, and other forest byproducts. These changes would help open new and emerging markets that are essential to the economic viability of America’s forests.
“Healthy, productive, and resilient forests depend on strong and diverse markets,” said Scott Jones, FLA’s Chief Executive Officer. “For timber producers and family forestry businesses, markets for residuals and low-value wood are often the difference between being able to actively manage their land or being forced to walk away. Modernizing the Renewable Fuel Standard would provide much-needed market certainty, strengthen rural economies, and help ensure America’s forests remain forests, even in the face of natural disasters, market disruptions, and unfair trade practices.”
Across the country, long-standing markets for pulpwood and residuals continue to erode, while landowners face increasing pressure from catastrophic wildfires, hurricanes, insect outbreaks, and global trade imbalances. At the same time, woody biomass offers a proven, science-based opportunity to support domestic energy production, reduce excess wood and debris on the forest floor that can fuel and intensify wildfires, improve forest health, and create new revenue streams for rural communities.
The coalition’s letter notes that Congress intended forest-based biomass to qualify under the Renewable Fuel Standard, but outdated regulations have kept it from being used at scale. Updating eligibility rules, recognizing standard forest management practices, and applying modern wildfire science would encourage private investment and expand market opportunities across the forestry supply chain.
“Timber producers and family forestry businesses are long-term stewards of their land,” Jones added. “When markets work, they can reinvest in reforestation, forest health, and resilience. When markets fail, forests are more vulnerable to conversion, neglect, and catastrophic loss. This coalition effort is about ensuring federal policy reflects on-the-ground realities and supports the families and businesses that manage the majority of America’s forests.”
The coalition letter was submitted to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and includes support from more than 200 national and state organizations representing forestry, agriculture, energy, conservation, wildlife, and rural economic interests.