Community Wood Grants issued through the Community Wood Energy and Wood Innovation Program award funding to shovel-ready projects to install a community wood energy system or build or expand an innovative wood product facility.
Donor Name: Forest Service
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 04/22/2026
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
Healthy forests depend on a vibrant forest products economy and forest products processing infrastructure. These projects will directly support forest health and stimulate local economies by expanding renewable wood energy and innovative wood products manufacturing capacity.
Goals and Objectives
- Expand thermally led community wood energy or innovative wood product opportunities
- Improve forest health
- Reduce forest management costs on all land types
- Stimulate local economies
Priorities
Preference will be given to projects that:
- Will aid forest restoration.
- Are located where markets are needed for low-value or low-quality wood.
- Use or retrofit existing sawmill facilities located in areas of high unemployment.
- Use the most stringent control technology that has been required or achieved in practice for a wood-fired boiler and will operate in a location with limited access to natural gas pipelines.
- Note: Projects that satisfy one or more of the above priorities will be more competitive. However, projects that do not address any of the priorities can still be competitive. For example, a project using wood residues to offset natural gas for heating can still be highly competitive even if it is located where there is an abundance of natural gas.
- Proposals incorporating commercially proven technologies will be most competitive.
Funding Information
The maximum for each award is $1 million to pay for up to 35% of total capital costs; however, the Forest Service may award up to $1.5 million or for up to 50% of the total capital costs only for a proposal that warrants special consideration, such as a project located in an area of high unemployment, adds critical forest products manufacturing infrastructure, advances forest management priorities, etc.
Eligibility Criteria
- Not-for-profit organizations
- Local, state, and tribal government
- Higher education institutions
- Businesses, companies, corporations (for profit)
- Indian tribes
- Special purpose districts (e.g. public utilities districts, fire districts, school districts, conservation districts and ports)
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
