2014 Hazardous Fuels Wood to Energy Grant Program Request for Proposals

Post Date

April 22nd 2014

Application Due Date

June 3rd 2014

Funding Opportunity Number

USDA-FS-WERC-2014-W2E

CFDA Number(s)

10.674

Funding Instrument Type(s)

Grant

Funding Activity Categories

Community Development
Energy
Natural Resources

Number of Awards

12

Eligibility Categories

State Governments
County Governments
City or Township Governments
Public and State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
Federally Recognized Native American Tribal Governments
Non-Profits With 501 (c) (3) Status With The IRS (Except Higher Education Institutions)
For-Profit Organizations (Except Small Businesses)
Small Businesses
Other

Special purpose districts (e.g., public utilities districts, fire districts, conservation districts, or ports)

Funding

• Estimated Total Funding:

  $2800000

• Award Range:

  $25000 - $250000

Grant Description

The U.S Forest Service Wood Education and Resource Center (WERC) requests proposals for wood energy projects that require engineering services necessary for final design and cost analysis. The Hazardous Fuels Wood to Energy (W2E) Grant Program will fund projects for which some or all of the woody biomass is generated from National Forest Service System lands as a result of hazardous fuel treatments, forest restoration activities, insect and disease mitigation, catastrophic weather events, or thinning overstocked stands. Projects that use woody biomass from multiple land ownerships (State, Tribal, or private lands) and multiple sources (wood products facilities, urban wood waste, etc.) will be considered as long as some of the woody biomass is generated from National Forest System lands. Projects that do not anticipate using any wood from National Forest System lands will not be eligible. The woody biomass must be used in commercially proven wood energy systems to produce thermal, electrical, liquid, or gaseous energy. Examples of projects might include, but are not limited to, engineering design of a woody biomass boiler that generates steam at a sawmill, hospital, or school; a nonpressurized hot water system; a biomass power generation facility; or geographic or sector-based clusters of wood energy systems. The lack of a professional engineering design often limits the ability of an applicant to secure Federal, State, or private funding. This program is intended for applicants seeking financial assistance to complete the necessary engineering design work, including permitting or other preconstruction analyses, required to secure public or private funding for construction of wood energy projects. An example of public funding is the USDA Rural Development grants and loan programs that might help fund construction of such facilities. This year, the W2E grant emphasizes geographic or sector-based clusters (e.g. hospitals, prisons, inmate conservation camps, school campuses, poultry houses, etc.) that should leverage project similarities to improve economies of scale and expand the use of woody biomass for energy. Completed electronic applications are due to the Regional Biomass Coordinator designated for your Forest Service region by 11:59 p.m. on June 3, 2014. Each submittal must consist of two separate PDF (or Word) files, as follows: 1. Proposal narrative and appendices (W2E Application Part 1 & Part 2, and Appendices) 2. Financial forms (W2E Application Part 3) For more details, visit http://www.na.fs.fed.us/werc/ and click on the link to 2014 Wood to Energy Grant Program.

Contact Information

• Agency

  Department of Agriculture

• Office:

  Forest Service

• Agency Contact:

  Edward Cesa
  Deputy Director - WERC
  Phone 304-285-1530

• Agency Mailing Address:

  USDA Forest Service

• Agency Email Address:

  ecesa@fs.fed.us

• More Information:

  USDA Forest Service