Colorado Forest Carbon Inventory Highlights: Aboveground Live Carbon (2002-2019)
February 17, 2026
Forests absorb carbon through photosynthesis and release it through respiration, decomposition and combustion.
Colorado Wood Utilization & Marketing Program
The Colorado Wood Utilization and Marketing Program (CoWood) strives to improve the quality of life for Colorado’s forest products producers, consumers, and forest users by being Colorado’s leading innovator for forest products information, service, education and outreach.
News and updates
The U.S. Forest Service is seeking information from Colorado’s timber purchasers, forest products companies, wood processors, biomass users and other businesses who rely on Colorado’s forests. The information provided will help them evaluate market needs and contract structures and plan future offerings that support forest health, economic development, and long-term stewardship. Information is due by Dec. 1, 2026. Visit this federal System for Award Management web page to learn more.
The Alliance for Green Heat has received funding to extend its Firewood Bank Assistance Program. The 2026-2027 grant application period opens on Nov. 1, 2026.
Congratulations to the 2026 recipients of the USDA Wood Innovations Program. 15 industry partners in Colorado successfully competed for over $5.6 million in funding to improve wood utilization and explore innovative forest products. For a complete list of funding awards, visit the USDA’s Wood Innovations Program Grants webpage.
CSFS and our partners with USFS and the Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, have issued a report on forest products markets, Woody biomass utilization, consumption and production in Colorado (PDF). Spending on Colorado’s wood products is characterized by volume and values and compared to past market data. This research is part of our overall statewide Wood Products and Woody Biomass Utilization, Consumption, and Production in Colorado reporting that will be soon released.
USDA announces the availability of financial support to qualified lenders with loan applicants wanting to establish, reopen, expand or improve a sawmill or other wood-processing facilities that process ecosystem-restoration byproducts from USDA Forest Service National Forest System lands. For information on the Timber Production and Expansion Guaranteed Loan Program (TPEP), visit Timber Production Expansion Guaranteed Loan Program (TPEP) | Rural Development or contact Tim Reader, [email protected], or Steve Rudolph, [email protected].
No-cost technical assistance is now available to wood products manufacturers from a new partnership between the US Endowment for Forestry and Communities and the USDA Forest Service. Wood products manufacturers can request and receive assistance for operational and strategic planning, guidance on equipment and process upgrades, safety practices and feasibility assessments, residue utilization, and markets. Visit the US Endowment for Forestry and Commuities website for more information or to request assistance.
A new video, Forest to Farm, explores ways to manage thousands of slash piles AND reduce carbon emissions, improve soil health and enhance water retention at the same time. Video produced by Oregon Department of Forestry with funds awarded from the Biomass Utilization grant program, established by the Colorado General Assembly and administered by the Colorado State Forest Service.
The CSFS is seeking applicants for it wildfire risk mitigation loan program. Loans are available for equipment and other working capital needs. Existing businesses or startups are eligible. Contact Tim Reader for additional details – 970-759-2443.
Wood products manufactured from trees infested or killed by mountain pine beetle or spruce beetle are now eligible for a state sales tax exemption. For complete information, check out guidance from the Colorado Department of Revenue (130 KB PDF).
Projects and community efforts
CoWood mission
The mission of the Colorado Wood Utilization and Marketing Program (CoWood) is to improve forest conditions by supporting the competitiveness and sustainability of Colorado’s wood products businesses and forestry contractors.
This includes improving wood utilization and market access for existing businesses and recruiting new wood product businesses, particularly along Colorado’s front-range, in order to reduce real and anticipated costs of forest management, forest restoration, and wildfire mitigation.
Services and support
- Providing access to forest products harvesting, manufacturing and market research
- Delivering technical, business and financial assistance
- Offering wood products training and professional development opportunities
- Providing wood products utilization expertise and support to businesses, state and federal partners, communities, and forest collaboratives
CoWood contact information
Tim Reader
Program Specialist
Utilization & Marketing
Durango Field Office
Colorado State Forest Service
970-759-2443
[email protected]
Steve Rudolph
Program Specialist
Utilization & Marketing
Colorado State Forest Service
970-420-8657
[email protected]
You can also connect with us by liking our Colorado State Forest Service Facebook page.
Carbon Accounting of Colorado’s Harvested Wood Products
April 24, 2025
The CSFS recently completed an accounting of carbon stored in Colorado’s harvested wood products. This S&D Byte provides key findings, trends over time and context from this inventory.
Carbon in Colorado’s Forests
January 9, 2025
Forests play a major role in atmospheric cycles. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere, whether from human emissions or natural sources, traps heat from the Earth and radiates some of it back to the planet’s surface, leading to warming. Trees
CSFS wood utilization news
Report: Woody biomass in Colorado: Quantification, assessment and opportunities
July 15, 2026
This report shows that with suitable funding commitments, Colorado has the potential to combine our understanding of the state’s forests with innovative solutions to reduce wildfire risk and promote forest and watershed health.
Colorado Front Range Mountain Pine Beetle Outlook: Current Conditions, Future Potential Susceptibility and Capacity to Process Impacted Volume
May 7, 2026
The CSFS used aerial survey and FIA data to examine ponderosa pine-dominant forests affected by an outbreak of mountain pine beetles in a nine-county area of the Front Range.
Review of Forest Action Plan reveals focused forest management
March 5, 2026
The Colorado State Forest Service and its partners conducted a vast majority of their forest management work in high-priority areas of the state and greatly increased the acres of forests they managed and enhanced annually from 2020 through 2024.
Carbon Accounting of Colorado’s Harvested Wood Products
April 24, 2025
The CSFS recently completed an accounting of carbon stored in Colorado’s harvested wood products. This S&D Byte provides key findings, trends over time and context from this inventory.
Forest health projects also support industry, tourism in North Routt County
February 28, 2025
Working with many partners and across boundaries on nearly 1800 acres, foresters in the Steamboat Springs Field Office have managed critical work that’s reduced wildfire risk and benefited the local economy.
CSFS staff named Region 9 Economic Development partner of the year
February 7, 2025
CSFS Utilization & Marketing Forester Tim Reader received the award for his work managing the Wildfire Risk Mitigation Loan Fund that has had tremendous economic impact in southwest Colorado.