NARA was funded from 2011 through 2016 by the Agriculture and Food 

Research Initiative competitive grant no. 2011-68005-3016 from the 

USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

November 2016: 

Alaska Airlines made the first commercial flight 

powered in part by renewable fuel made from wood 

waste salvaged from tribal and private lands in 

Washington, Oregon, and Montana.

These assessments were 

projects of the Northwest 

Advanced Renewables 

Alliance (NARA). 

Using residual biomass 

from logging operations 

as feedstocks, NARA aims 

to create a sustainable 

industry to produce 

aviation biofuels and 

value-added co-products.

Highlights from an economic analysis 

for a proposed biorefinery and 

related economic sectors in western 

Washington and Oregon

ABOUT NARA

https://nararenewables.org 

Led by Washington State University, the NARA project includes a broad 

alliance of private industry, government laboratories, and educational 

institutions throughout the United States. The project includes study 

sites affiliated with the North American Long-Term Soil Productivity 

Network (Fall River, Matlock, and Molalla) which were established with 

support from the forest industry and U.S. Forest Service Research and 

Development through the Agenda 2020 Program. 

WOOD TO WING

Environmental Effects 

of Using Postharvest, 

Residual Biomass to 

Produce Wood-Based Jet Fuel

United States Department of Agriculture

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Volume of woody material by county

Cowlitz WA 18%

Lewis WA 16%

Clatsop OR 14%

Pacific WA 13%

Columbia OR 7%

Wahkiakum WA 6%

Clark WA 6%

Washington OR 5%

Tillamook OR 4%

Other counties 11%

A wood-fueled biorefinery: What would it produce?

A case study—Longview, Washington

INDUSTRIES WITHIN THE REGION 

THAT WOULD MOST BENEFIT FROM A 

WOOD-FUELED BIOREFINERY: 

$327,000,000.00

$48,500,000.00

$40,800,000.00

$40,700,000.00

$22,700,000.00

$17,400,000.00

$17,400,000.00

$14,400,000.00

$11,400,000.00

Logging

Nonresidential remodeling

and repair

Electric power distribution

Sawmills

Truck transportation 

Wholesale trade

Owner-occupied dwellings

Industrial gas manufacturing

Biorefinery

Industry Projected revenue 

Grays Harbor

Thurston

Washington

Oregon

Lewis Pacific

Wahkiakum

Cowlitz

Longview

Skamania

Clatsop Columbia

Tillamook Washington

Clark

Multnomah

Trucking

Logging

Clackamas Yamhill

Marion

SUSTAINABLY PRODUCED PRODUCTS 

FOR REGIONAL, NATIONAL, AND 

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS

Products include: 

• Biofuel blend for refueling planes at 

regional airports.

• Lignosulfonates, used by the concrete 

industry around the world.

• Activated carbon, used in air filters at 

U.S. coal-fired power plants.

JOBS AROUND THE REGION

A wood-fueled biorefinery would lead to jobs in many 

different sectors. The estimates below are for the Pacific 

to Cascade Crest region of western Washington and 

Oregon, assuming construction of a bio-refinery in 

Longview, Washington.

• 10,000 jobs over 3 years related to 

construction of biorefinery. 

• 2,170 jobs related to annual operation of biorefinery and meeting needs of plant employees, 

their families, and plant suppliers: 

• 170 jobs at the biorefinery

• 820 jobs to meet household needs of 

plant owners, employees, and suppliers 

(restaurants, hospitals, local retail, etc.)

• 1,170 jobs associated with meeting supply 

needs of the biorefinery 

LOGGING AND TRUCKING: 

ECONOMIC BENEFITS TO THESE 

INDUSTRIES BY COUNTY

Branches, bark, and other forest residuals from 

timber harvests would fuel the biorefinery. Because of 

transportation costs, the forestry sectors in counties 

closest to the proposed plant benefit the most: