Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 117.djvu/1921

 117 STAT. 1902

PUBLIC LAW 108–148—DEC. 3, 2003

SEC. 202. RURAL REVITALIZATION THROUGH FORESTRY.

Section 2371 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6601) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘(d) RURAL REVITALIZATION TECHNOLOGIES.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, in consultation with the State and Private Forestry Technology Marketing Unit at the Forest Products Laboratory, and in collaboration with eligible institutions, may carry out a program— ‘‘(A) to accelerate adoption of technologies using biomass and small-diameter materials; ‘‘(B) to create community-based enterprises through marketing activities and demonstration projects; and ‘‘(C) to establish small-scale business enterprises to make use of biomass and small-diameter materials. ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008.’’. 16 USC 6531.

SEC. 203. BIOMASS COMMERCIAL UTILIZATION GRANT PROGRAM.

(a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to any other authority of the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to a person that owns or operates a facility that uses biomass as a raw material to produce electric energy, sensible heat, transportation fuel, or substitutes for petroleum-based products, the Secretary may make grants to a person that owns or operates a facility that uses biomass for wood-based products or other commercial purposes to offset the costs incurred to purchase biomass. (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008.

TITLE III—WATERSHED FORESTRY ASSISTANCE 16 USC 6541.

SEC. 301. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— (1) there has been a dramatic shift in public attitudes and perceptions about forest management, particularly in the understanding and practice of sustainable forest management; (2) it is commonly recognized that the proper stewardship of forest land is essential to sustaining and restoring the health of watersheds; (3) forests can provide essential ecological services in filtering pollutants, buffering important rivers and estuaries, and minimizing flooding, which makes forest restoration worthy of special focus; and (4) strengthened education, technical assistance, and financial assistance for nonindustrial private forest landowners and communities, relating to the protection of watershed health, is needed to realize the expectations of the general public. (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title are— (1) to improve landowner and public understanding of the connection between forest management and watershed health;

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