Green Mountain National Forest

1. Name - Green Mountain National Forest

The Green Mountain National Forest was established in 1932 after uncontrolled logging, fire, and flooding ravaged the state of Vermont. The Forest is within a day's drive of 70 million people and encompasses more than 400,000 acres in southwestern and central Vermont, forming the largest contiguous public land area in the State. Characterized by striking scenery that combines mountain peaks with quintessential Vermont villages, the Forest is an attraction for many visitors.

The Green Mountain National Forest and the surrounding state and private lands were chosen for the Joint Fire Science Program assessment because of the existing forest products industry in the region and the focus on biomass utilization for energy and thermal heat applications in public buildings. This case also represents the utilization of northern hardwood forests and the strategies used to procure biomass from predominately private forest landowners.  Wildfire risks are not a significant concern on the Green Mountain National Forests but the challenges and lessons learned from this case helps illuminate strategies for biomass utilization in other parts of the country.

Multiple efforts are underway to expand the use of forest biomass, which until recently was largely limited to the Burlington Electric 50-megawatt facility in Burlington, VT and the 20-megawatt Suez Energy Generation facility in Ryegate, VT.  By accessing funds from the Vermont Clean Energy Development Fund and the Department of Education, nearly 25 percent of Vermont schools and industrial facilities have been converted to wood-fire boilers to provide thermal heating. Several pellet companies are currently conducting feasibility studies, and entities like Middlebury College are installing small-scale (< 5 megawatt) combined heat and power systems to offset the high costs of using fuel oil.

Most of the supply of biomass for thermal and electricity generation is procured from private forest landowners and then generally as a byproduct of preceding commercial timber harvest activities.  Very little logging has taken place on the Green Mountain National Forest in recent years, which has offered for sale about 5 million board feet annually as compared to an annual allowable sale quantity of almost 20 million board feet.  As a result, the availability of biomass is a concern among stakeholders and local businesses.  Some are concerned that expansion of biomass production could lead to unsustainable harvest levels, but most stakeholders agree that the supply exists but that scale of removal will need to be small to maximize wildlife benefits and reduce impacts on aesthetics.  The challenges of biomass procurement and subsequent utilization generally revolve around four key factors: 1) decline of integrated forest products markets; 2) competition for biomass and perceptions of it being a low-valued product; 3) declining logging capacity; and 4) NEPA planning on public forest lands.

The forests of Vermont are dominated by high-value hardwood species used in furniture and other high quality durable goods. However, depressed markets are creating a situation where harvesting costs and subsequent biomass removal exceeds the market value.  Efforts to encourage the use biomass could inadvertently lead to supply disruptions unless the value of logs removed for integrated markets can be used to offset the costs of biomass recovered.  However, there is growing recognition that biomass for thermal or electricity generation may in fact not be such a low-value product.  The high price of heating oil has created increased demand for firewood and wood chips to the point that the prices paid by school districts and other small-scale users are greater than for traditional pulpwood markets and large-scale electricity generation. Local users are also increasingly interested in procuring “green chips” from certified forests, which could further increase the value of biomass.

Logging capacity in the region is also a concern. The average age of loggers is increasing and their equipment is outdated. The implication is that the number of loggers needed to get the biomass out of the woods is decreasing and with it their efficiency, which increases costs.  On federal public lands, the focus on wildlife habitat may offer opportunities to increase biomass removal through the creation of forest openings. The challenged is that the NEPA planning process has historically slowed the progress of projects and implementation has been delayed by stakeholders filling appeals or litigation objecting to harvest practices.  In response to these challenges, the following strategies have been used to enhance the scope and sustainability of biomass utilization in the region:

• “Community-scaled” is a term commonly used to describe the scale of biomass production and planning in the region, which is generally less than 5-megawatts in size and on parcels of less than 100 acres. The community-scale takes into consideration an array of stakeholder perceptions, concerns for wildlife habitat and aesthetics, and encourages a diversity of forest product types.
• To address concerns about biomass supply and sustainability, the Biomass Energy Research Center in Montpelier, VT partnered with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation and the Vermont Department of Buildings & General Services to conduct an assessment of the availability and reliability of wood fuel for biomass energy by landowner type, which is being used to match the scale of biomass infrastructure to the location and volume of available supply.  It is also being used to developed integrated resource management plans on state and private forests.
• Green Mountain National Forest staff began using Stewardship Contracting in 2007 to increase the supply of biomass from federal lands.  While small in scale, these contracts have led to a
• perception that agency efforts are now more accepted than in the past.  A greater percentage of local communities, which number more than 50 surrounding the Forest, are also now more engaged and routinely provide comments on forest planning. Local businesses would like to see increased use of Stewardship Contracting so that they can secure long term agreements necessary for them to invest in new equipment.
• The Northern Forest Biomass Energy Initiative was convened in 2006 to explore the potential for biomass from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York to provide an increased source of renewable, sustainable energy.  Conservation organizations, business interests, and private industry put forth a series of joint recommendations to guide state and local policy development with respects to enhancing biomass production. Policies are directed at sustainability, efficiency, local energy, security, and climate change mitigation.

The “community-scale” focus emphasizes local partnerships and collaboration, but also on matching the size of facilities to the scope of management and availability of resources. The forest products industry of the state has largely been retained, which helps in the development of integrated markets, but as the value for biomass increases, competition will also increase for available resources.  Also, procurement from private landowners will become more difficult as land use values change.