An act to authorize a pilot program to encourage the efficient utilization of wood residues, and for other purposes.
PL 96-554 (S.1996), enacted 12/19/1980

PUBLIC LAW 96-554-DEC. 19, 1980 
94 STAT. 3257 
Public Law 96-554 
96th Congress 
An Act 
To authorize a pilot program to encourage the efficient utilization of wood residues, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be 
cited as the "Wood Residue Utilization Act of 1980". 
SEC. 2. The purpose of this Act is to develop, demonstrate, and make 
available information on feasible methods that have potential for 
commercial application to increase and improve utilization, in resi-
dential, commercial, and industrial or powerplant applications, of 
wood residues resulting from timber harvesting and forest protection 
and management activities occurring on public and private forest 
lands, and from the manufacture of forest products, including wood-
pulp. 
SEC. 3. (a) The Secretary may establish pilot projects and demon-
strations to carry out the purposes of this Act. The pilot projects and 
demonstrations established under this section (1) may be operated by 
the Secretary; or (2) may be carried out through contracts or agree-
ments with owners of private forest lands or other persons, or in 
conjunction with projects, contracts, or agreements entered into 
under any other authority which the Secretary may possess: Pro-
vided, That nothing contained in this Act shall abrogate or modify 
provisions of existing contracts or agreements, including contracts or 
agreements for the sale of national forest timber, except to the extent 
such changes are mutually agreed to by the parties to such contracts 
or agreements. 
(b) Pilot projects and demonstrations carried out under this section 
may include, but are not limited to (1) establishment and operation of 
utilization demonstration areas; (2) establishment and operation of 
fuel wood concentration and distribution centers; and (3) construction 
of access roads needed to facilitate wood residue utilization: Provided, 
That residue removal credits may be utilized by the Secretary only as 
provided in section 4. 
SEC. 4. The Secretary may carry out pilot wood residue utilization 
projects under which purchasers of National Forest System timber 
under contracts awarded prior to October 1, 1986, may, except as 
otherwise provided in this section, be required to remove wood 
residues not purchased by them to points of prospective use in return 
for compensation in the form of "residue removal credits." Such 
projects may be carried out where the Secretary identifies situations 
in which pilot wood residue utilization projects on the National 
Forest System can provide important information on various meth-
ods and approaches to increasing the utilization, in residential, 
commercial, and industrial or powerplant applications, of wood 
residues and where such information cannot reasonably be obtained 
unless the pilot projects are done in conjunction with normal 
National Forest timber sale activities. The residue removal credits 
Dec. 19, 1980 
[S. 1996] 
Wood Residue 
Utilization Act 
of 1980. 
16 u s e 1600 
note. 
16 u s e 1681. 
Pilot projects 
and 
demonstrations, 
establishment. 
16 u s e 1682. 
Residue removal 
credits. 
16 u s e 1683. 
94 STAT. 3258 
PUBLIC LAW 96-554—DEC. 19, 1980 
shall be applied against the amount payable for the timber purchased 
and shall represent the anticipated cost of removal of wood residues. 
Guidelines. 
The following guidelines shall apply to projects carried out under this 
section: 
(1) Except in cases where wood residue removal is determined 
to be necessary for fire prevention, site preparation for regenera-
tion, wildlife habitat improvement, or other land management 
purposes, the Secretary may not provide for removal of wood 
residues in instances where the anticipated cost of removal 
would exceed the anticipated value. 
(2) The residue removal credits authorized by this section shall 
not exceed the amount payable by the purchaser for timber after 
the application of all other designated charges and credits. 
(3) The Secretary may sell the wood residues removed to points 
of prospective use for not less than their appraised value. 
(4) Pilot projects, demonstrations, and other programs estab-
lished pursuant to this Act shall be carried out in a manner 
which does not result in an adverse effect on the furnishing of 
timber, free of charge, under any other provision of law. 
(5) Wood residues shall be collected from a site so as to avoid 
soil depletion or erosion giving full consideration to the protec-
tion of wildlife habitat. 
(6) For the purposes of the sixth undesignated paragraph under 
the heading FOREST SERVICE" in the Act of May 23,1908 (35 Stat. 
260; 16 U.S.C. 500), and section 13 of the Act of March 1,1911 (36 
Stat. 963; 16 U.S.C. 500), (A) any residue removal credit applied 
under this section shall be considered as "money received" or 
"moneys received", respectively, and (B) the "money received" or 
"moneys received", respectively, from the sales of wood residues 
removed to points of prospective use shall be the proceeds of the 
sales less the sum of any residue removal credit applied with 
respect to such residues plus any costs incurred by the Forest 
Service in processing and storing such residues. 
Reports to 
SEC. 5. The Secretary shall make annual reports to the Congress on 
lis 1^^684 
^^® programs authorized by this Act. These reports shall be submit-
ted with the reports required under section 8(c) of the Forest and 
16 use 1606. 
Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974. 
16 use 1685. 
SEC. 6. The Secretary shall issue such regulations as the Secretary 
deems necessary to implement the provisions of this Act. 
Definitions. 
SEC. 7. For purposes of this Act, the term: 
16 use 1686. 
Q) "Anticipated cost of removal" means the projected cost of 
removal of wood residues from timber sales areas to points of 
prospective use, as determined by the Secretary at the time of 
advertisement of the timber sales contract in accordance with 
appropriate appraisal and sale procedures. 
(2) Anticipated value" means the projected value of wood 
residues as fuel or other merchantable wood products, as deter-
mined by the Secretary at the time of advertisement of the 
timber sales contract in accordance with appropriate appraisal 
and sale procedures. 
(3) "Points of prospective use" means the locations where the 
wood residues are sold or otherwise put to use, as determined by 
the Secretary in accordance with appropriate appraisal and sale 
procedures. 
(4) "Person" means an individual, partnership, joint-stock 
company, corporation, association, trust, estate, or any other 
legal entity, or any agency of Federal or State government or of a 
political subdivision of a State. 
PUBLIC LAW 96-554—DEC. 19, 1980 
94 STAT. 3259 
(5) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture. 
(6) "Wood residues" includes, but is not limited to, logging 
slash, down timber material, woody plants, and standing live or 
dead trees which do not meet utilization standards because of 
size, species, merchantable volume, or economic selection crite-
ria and which, in the case of live trees, are surplus to growing 
stock needs. 
SEC. 8. There is hereby authorized to be appropriated not to exceed Appropriation 
$25,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1982,1983,1984,1985, and 1986 f^VjSg^Jji"-
to carry out the pilot projects and demonstrations authorized by 
section 3 of this Act, the residue removal credits authorized by section 
4 of this Act, and the other provisions of this Act: Provided, That not 
to exceed $2,500,000 of such amount may be appropriated for adminis-
trative expenses to carry out this Act for the period beginning 
October 1,1981, and ending September 30,1986. Such sums shall be in 
addition to those provided under other provisions of law and shall 
remain available until expended. 
SEC. 9. This Act shall become effective October 1,1981. 
Effective date. 
16 use 1681 
Approved December 19, 1980. 
"°*«-
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 96-913 accompanying H.R. 6755 (Comm. on Agriculture) and 
No. 96-1526 (Comm. of Conference). 
SENATE REPORT No. 96-634 (Comm. on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 126 (1980): 
Mar. 25, considered and passed Senate. 
Aug. 18, H.R. 6755 considered and passed House; passage vacated and S. 1996, 
amended, passed in lieu. 
Dec. 5, House agreed to conference report. 
Dec. 8, Senate agreed to conference report. 
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, Vol. 16, No. 51: 
Dec. 19, Presidential statement.