Placer County supervisors in California, United States, have approved a loan of up to $6 million to Sierra Nevada BiocharBiochar is a carbon-rich material created from biomass decomposition in low-oxygen conditions. It has important applications in environmental remediation, soil improvement, agriculture, carbon sequestration, energy storage, and sustainable materials, promoting efficiency and reducing waste in various contexts while addressing climate change challenges. More LLC, a subsidiary of Biochar Now LLC, to construct a biomassBiomass is a complex biological organic or non-organic solid product derived from living or recently living organism and available naturally. Various types of wastes such as animal manure, waste paper, sludge and many industrial wastes are also treated as biomass because like natural biomass these More processing facility at the Eastern Regional Landfill near Truckee. The public-private financing structure utilizes funds from the county’s Solid Waste Enterprise Fund to establish local processing capacity for wood waste removed during regional forest-thinning and wildfire-prevention activities.

Municipal governments and forestry managers in fire-prone regions face substantial logistical costs and carbon emissions associated with transporting excess woody biomass across long distances for disposal. Currently, Placer County generates between 20,000 and 25,000 bone-dry tons of forest debris annually at the Eastern Regional Landfill, all of which is hauled up to 200 miles round-trip to remote biomass facilities. This long-distance hauling increases regional forest-thinning expenditures, consumes municipal landfill capacity, and limits local markets for low-value wood residues.

The approved deal structure provides Sierra Nevada Biochar LLC with a five-year, $6 million loan at a 10% annual interest rate, disbursed on a reimbursement basis following verified invoice expenditures. The first phase of the facility will feature 30 non-combustion thermal conversion kilns and a 12,800-square-foot processing and storage structure designed to process an initial 5,000 tons of biomass per year, with scaling capacity up to 13,000 tons. Sierra Nevada Biochar LLC will purchase a minimum of 5,000 tons of biomass annually from the county at $60 per ton, while its parent firm, Biochar Now LLC, will fund any project costs exceeding $6 million and provide collateral including equipment, buildings, carbon credits, patents, and multi-site corporate assets.

Establishing the Cabin Creek facility localized biomass conversion, eliminating long-distance hauling routes and providing the county with $15,000 in monthly ground-lease rent alongside a 10% share of net operational profits. Construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2027, creating five permanent full-time jobs while lowering local green-waste processing fees and enhancing regional forest resilience.