Biomass

To help alleviate the costly burden of biomass disposal, for the second year in a row there was a free greenwaste collection site, in thanks to a partnership of the Mt. Shasta Area Fire Safe Council, the City of Mt. Shasta, the Mt. Shasta High School football team, Siskiyou County, Cal Works?, CALFIRE, and the Fire Safe Council of Siskiyou County. Opened Monday, May 2nd, 2011 this biomass collection site was open from 9 A.M. to 3:30 P.M. Monday through Friday and Saturdays from 10 A.M. to 3:30 P.M., but closed on Sunday. The site was open for only about a 45-day period, contingent on fire weather. Greenwaste only was received at the site. Leaves, dirt, stumps, rocks, metal, plastic, construction waste, painted/ treated lumber, or other contaminants were allowed. This was an excellent opportunity to perform spring clean-up of storm damage from past winters and also get properties fire-safe compliant to the law, Public Resource Code 4291. It has also been reported to local Fire Safe Councils that a number of insurance companies are issuing “comply or get cancelled” letters to many insured property owners who are not meeting fire-safe requirements.

The biomass collected was processed as a free public service by owner Tristan Allen of the Siskiyou County-based CLT Logging Company and hauled to Roseburg Forest Products’ newly expanded biomass plan for efficient conversion to electric energy, lessening the region’s dependence on coal-fired electric production purchases from outside the region.

Location of the free “greenwaste to energy” collection yard was in south Mt. Shasta City, at the old Roseburg Mill site across South Mt. Shasta Boulevard from Finlandia Motel.

The Mt. Shasta Area Fire Safe Council is planning to reopen the biomass collection site again in Spring 2012 predicated upon acquiring more partners to implement this endeavor.