Having our wood count toward renewable fuels
Her 390-acre property is located near Lynchburg, in Big Island. The land started out as an old abandoned farm, but she’s worked since 1985 to correct previous poor forestry practices. Now the land is healthy and thriving. So much so that she was named Virginia’s outstanding Tree Farmer of the year in 1991.
Anitra explained to the Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research that “forest biomass can and should be an important source for renewable fuels.”
Unfortunately, the Renewable Fuel Standard passed by Congress in 2007 essentially left out the opportunity for family forests and other privately held forests to supply biomass for the production of renewable fuels. This is a serious concern for family forest owners, who are working hard every day to pay their taxes and maintain healthy forests.
Anitra called for fixes to the Standard to allow all sustainably produced forest biomass, from both planted forests and those that naturally regenerate. Without this change, even properties like hers, that are certified to meet international standards for sustainable forest management, could be unfairly excluded from an important emerging market, at a time when the forest products industry is at a 30-year low.
With the change, Congress can keep healthy forests as forests, preserving their capacity to store carbon and provide clean water, wildlife, recreation and scenic values to their communities.
Let your senators and reps know what this means to you as a forest landowner.
Read Anitra’s entire testimony.
