Under the authority and direction of the State Board of Forestry except as otherwise provided for the sale of forest products, the State Forester shall manage the lands acquired pursuant to ORS 530.010 to 530.040 so as to secure the greatest permanent value of those lands to the state, and to that end may:
ORS 530.050
Section 30, chapter 442, Oregon Laws 2023, provides:
Sec. 30. Low carbon fuels derived from woody biomass residues. (1) The College of Forestry at Oregon State University, in collaboration with the Department of Environmental Quality and the State Forestry Department, shall conduct research to develop methodologies and data necessary to establish fuel pathways, consistent with the clean fuels program adopted under ORS 468A.265 to 468A.277, for low carbon fuels derived from woody biomass residues from forestry operations. In carrying out the research under this section, the College of Forestry shall:
(a) Coordinate with the Department of Environmental Quality to ensure that the methodologies and data are consistent with the methodologies and data used to determine lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions and carbon intensity under the clean fuels program.
(b) Research any methods to convert biomass feedstocks to low carbon fuels, with particular focus on wood slash piles that would otherwise be burned on lands managed by the State Forester or lands used by the College of Forestry to carry out research.
(2) No later than July 31, 2025, the College of Forestry shall submit its findings in a report, in the manner provided by ORS 192.245, to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to natural resources. The report must include, but need not be limited to:
(a) Progress in establishing fuel pathways and carbon intensity values for low carbon fuels derived from woody biomass residues from forestry operations; and
(b) The impact converting woody biomass residues to low carbon fuels has on:
(A) Greenhouse gas and black carbon emissions;
(B) Snowpack in the Cascade Mountains;
(C) Water quality and drought; and
(D) Wildfire.
(3) The College of Forestry may collaborate with the Department of Environmental Quality or any other relevant state agency to prepare the report described in subsection (2) of this section. [2023 c. 442, § 30]