This bill significantly modifies the Clean Air Act's definition of renewable biomass , specifically for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. The primary goal is to broaden the types of materials eligible for renewable fuel production, thereby potentially expanding markets for these resources. Key changes include a wider array of materials from forest products manufacturing and wood processing, such as wood residuals, sawdust, and paper recycling residuals, while explicitly excluding commonly recycled paper. Furthermore, the legislation expands the inclusion of trees, shrubs, and related debris from various land categories. For non-Federal land , materials are eligible if the land is managed under sustainability programs, classified as forest land for tax purposes, or if the landowner attests to long-term timber production. On National Forest System and public lands , materials must be certified by federal agencies as by-products of land management, fuel reduction, or ecological restoration, and not suitable for use as sawlogs. These certifications must align with applicable federal laws and forest management plans. The bill also explicitly includes vegetation obtained from wildfire risk reduction activities , covering materials cleared from defensible spaces around structures and infrastructure, as well as those from broader wildfire risk reduction efforts within the wildland-urban interface. It establishes clear certification and attestation requirements for landowners and federal agencies to ensure compliance with the expanded definition. This aims to incentivize the use of materials generated from efforts to mitigate wildfire risks.
This bill significantly modifies the Clean Air Act's definition of renewable biomass , specifically for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. The primary goal is to broaden the types of materials eligible for renewable fuel production, thereby potentially expanding markets for these resources. Key changes include a wider array of materials from forest products manufacturing and wood processing, such as wood residuals, sawdust, and paper recycling residuals, while explicitly excluding commonly recycled paper. Furthermore, the legislation expands the inclusion of trees, shrubs, and related debris from various land categories. For non-Federal land , materials are eligible if the land is managed under sustainability programs, classified as forest land for tax purposes, or if the landowner attests to long-term timber production. On National Forest System and public lands , materials must be certified by federal agencies as by-products of land management, fuel reduction, or ecological restoration, and not suitable for use as sawlogs. These certifications must align with applicable federal laws and forest management plans. The bill also explicitly includes vegetation obtained from wildfire risk reduction activities , covering materials cleared from defensible spaces around structures and infrastructure, as well as those from broader wildfire risk reduction efforts within the wildland-urban interface. It establishes clear certification and attestation requirements for landowners and federal agencies to ensure compliance with the expanded definition. This aims to incentivize the use of materials generated from efforts to mitigate wildfire risks.