With the installation of two new state-of-the-art 55,000 board feet dry kilns, drying capacity for hardwood lumber will increase by 1,320,000 board feet annually

The Department of Agriculture Forest Service R9-Eastern Region awarded $1 million to Brownlee Lumber, Inc. on January 28, 2026, under the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act Financial Assistance to Facilities that Purchase and Process Byproducts for Ecosystem Restoration program (CFDA 10.725).

Brownlee Lumber will install two state-of-the-art 55,000 board feet dry kilns and replace an existing chipper at its facility in Pennsylvania. The dry kiln installation will increase annual drying capacity by 1,320,000 board feet and enable processing of an additional 1,100,000 board feet of hardwood logs annually. The new chipper will maintain capacity to produce 9,600 tons of hardwood chips annually. These capital improvements support processing of forest-management byproducts from the Allegheny National Forest, state lands, and private properties, reducing the cost burden of ecosystem restoration projects while enabling sustainable hardwood lumber production and rural economic development.

Performance extends through September 30, 2029. The award is a Project Grant, an assistance type under a program designed to provide financial assistance to wood-processing facilities that utilize byproducts from federal, Indian, and rangeland ecosystem restoration projects identified as high or very high priority.

Based on the volume calculations, the mill could convert 1,100,000 board feet of additional hardwood logs to produce kiln dried hardwood lumber. The installation of a new chipper to replace an existing worn machine will maintain the capacity to produce 9,600 tons of hardwood chips annually. Both of these actions will increase ecosystem restoration on both the allegheny national forest and state lands as well as private landowners.