A bipartisan group of senators is proposing legislation to put more of the Forest Service’s research on wood products into commercial use — and possibly reduce wildfire risks at the same time.
Four lawmakers introduced the “Forest Bioeconomy Act,” which would create an office at the Forest Service devoted to connecting the agency’s research arm and private industry to find new uses for low-value material thinned from forests.
The new Office of Technology Transfer, operating on as much as $5 million a year, would be modeled after similar efforts at other federal agencies such as the Department of Energy. Forest Service research would be commercialized and patented and, if successful, would create revenue for the federal government.
Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Jim Justice (R-W.Va.) are the bill’s chief sponsors.
