The U.S. Forest Service is investing more than $15 million in Oregon's wood product industry to boost rural economics, support active forest management and promote wood and energy infrastructure.
U.S. Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, and Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, announced the awards in an Aug. 17 news release.
The projects are a "win-win" to reduce wildfire risk while supporting Oregon's wood products which are the "best in the world," Merkley said in the release.
"Federal support helps keep our state at the forefront of timber innovation while uplifting our rural communities," added Merkley.
"Our state's world-renowned wood products industry only gets stronger with federal investments like these that sharpen its cutting edge, keep generating jobs and lessen the dangers from wildfires," Wyden said in the release.
The Oregon grants are a part of the $105.5 million the USFS has awarded for projects across the country in 2026.
Oregon's wood industry will use the funds to support a number of projects, varying from repairing equipment to engineering renewable energy systems.
The University of Oregon will use the grant money to encourage adoption of mass timber by addressing acoustical considerations.
Neiman Enterprises, Inc. in Gilchrist plans to restore a combined heat and power plant that converts wood residuals into renewable on-site heat and electricity.
Chuck Eggert of Biodynamics, LLC. said the award will repair idle equipment at the Hines mill to help the company create wood pellets and other products from salvage logs.
Malheur Forest Products in John Day will use the grant money for multiple projects including modernizing and reopening an idle sawmill to handle small diameter and low value logs.
"We've fought through some difficult years to keep people working and keep the forest products industry alive in Grant County. When times were tough, we stayed, we kept investing, and we kept believing in this community," Russ Young of Malheur Forest Products said in a statement.
The 20 Oregon projects are divided into three grant categories and include companies across the state.
Prairie Wood Products LLC in Prairie City: $2,000,000 for restarting and upgrading an existing sawmill facility to process low value logs in Eastern Oregon.
Malheur Forest Products LLC in John Day: $2,000,000 for retrofitting, modernizing and reopening an idle sawmill to handle small diameter and low value logs.
Forestry First LLC in Gilchrist: $265,809 to add a lug loader to an existing sawmill to increase efficiency of mill operations.
Co-Gen CO. LLC in Prairie City: $2,000,000 to reopen and upgrade a combined heat and power biomass energy system co-located with a sawmill to provide fuel.
Wren Hill Lumber LLC in Philomath: $2,000,000 to upgrade a sawmill to increase capacity and efficiency, and to allow use of small diameter logs.
Biodynamics LLC in Hines: $2,000,000 to restart idle equipment and install new equipment to integrate product lines and provide more markets for small diameter and low value logs.
FIX Infrastructure, LLC in Gaston: $300,000 to complete engineering and design to co-locate a wood energy and biochar production system at a sawmill to expand markets for mill residuals.
Single Widget, LLC in Portland: $200,000 to advance production of wood wool wall building products to increase utilization of low-value biomass.
Stimson Lumber Co. in Tillamook: $346,712 to upgrade sawmill production equipment to increase lumber production.
World Forestry Center in Portland: $295,292 to design and engineer a publicly accessible mass timber pavilion to accelerate domestic wood product markets.
Malheur Forest Products LLC in John Day: $150,000 to complete permitting and other requirements to reopen sawmill facility.
Mount Hood Forest Products in Hood River: $243,610 to upgrade lumber production technologies.
Wyeast Timber Services LLC in Hood River: $247,922 to install wood processing equipment to expand small diameter wood utilization.
Cedarstone LLC in Eugene: $300,000 to develop production processes and products to increase mass timber in prefabricated homes.
University of Oregon in Eugene: $300,000 to accelerate adoption of mass timber by addressing acoustical considerations.
Traeger Pellet Grills, LLC in Sweet Home: $300,000 to automate wood pellet processing to increase biomass utilization.
Solid Carbon, Inc. in McMinnville: $300,000 to create a market pathway for bioenergy waste in the western U.S.
Brink Brothers Inc. in Pleasant Hill: $1,000,000 to install a wood-fired kiln system utilizing low value materials to produce dried firewood.
Roseburg Forest Products Co. in Springfield: $577,231 to retrofit a manual laminated veneer lumber layup line with commercially proven automated layup equipment to improve efficiency.
Neiman Enterprises, Inc. in Gilchrist: $264,461 to restore a biomass cogeneration system offline since 2020, converting wood residuals into renewable on-site heat and electricity.
Makenzie Stamets is an outdoor intern at the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @MakenzieStamets.
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: What Oregon wood industry will do with $15M from US Forest Service