The Composite Panel Association's (CPA) Board approved a proposed revision to the renewable biomass definition published in the Farm Bill. According to the association, the current definition leaves the composite industry and others in the wood manufacturing sector vulnerable to the variables of future subsidy programs. Revisions include the following:

In the public lands section, the Board added a few product categories for purposes of defining “higher-value product” and added wording that will insure the exclusion of by-products generated at mill sites, such as chips, shavings and sawdust: "including, but not limited to, composite wood panels, lumber, finished or other manufactured wood products, mulch, nursery media, paper & packaging; are collected or harvested directly from the land before delivery to a biomass conversion facility."

In the non-Federal land section, a qualified definition of “trees” was added to make sure that round woods currently delivered to wood product manufacturing sites are not eligible for subsidies and diverted for energy. Also in this section, the phrase “would not otherwise be used for higher-value products” was added along with examples of product types to be excluded.

Since CPA’s board approval of the revised definition, the changes have garnered the support of the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturer’s Association (BIFMA), the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHLA), the Mulch and Soil Council (MSC) and the Society of American Florists (SAF), and all members of the CPA-led Wood Fiber Coalition.

CPA says it has sent its revised renewable biomass definition to Capitol Hill.