Board approves pilot biochar/biomass processing contract and site work at LaBarre Meadows

Nevada County Office of Emergency Services presented a pilot biomass-to-biochar project on county property at LaBarre Meadows Road and the Board approved a professional services agreement with Mountain Enterprises ($90,000) to provide grappling truck services used to move large woody material to an on-site carbonizer. County staff and EarthFoundries explained pyrolysis converts clean woody material into biochar — a carbon-rich soil amendment — and emphasized the project aims to process large-diameter woody debris that is otherwise hard to reuse.

Daniel Amazola presented technical details and program specifications: accepted feedstock is "clean and green" wood (no treated or construction debris), feedstock target sizes (2–14 inches diameter, up to ~20-foot lengths before right-sizing), and a processing target of several thousand tons (staff estimated inventory processing on the order of 4–5,000 tons across the pilot). Partners include PG&E (financial support/subsidy for some tons and equipment mobilization), EarthFoundries (operations/processing), Nevada County Consolidated Fire District and regional cities (safety/coordination) and local programs such as a senior firewood program.

The Board approved the Mountain Enterprises agreement and associated site-improvement budget (the OES allocation was described as approximately $233,592 overall with $121,000 for site improvements and $112,000 for services/subsidies). Staff described that the carbonizer equipment is available through partner operations, air-quality controls and AQMD compliance are part of the operations plan, and the pilot will run between the present month and June 2025 with the grappler contract funding roughly 18 days of service under the current budget; staff said they will seek additional funding and PG&E support to expand operations.