Innovations in Low Grade Wood Materials

Kane, Pa. – Thursday, April 4 is the last day to register for the April 11 Roach-Bauer Forestry Forum on Innovations in Low Grade Materials.  Three topics will be covered:  innovations in wood utilization that help sustainable forest management, commercial production of birch oils, and conversion of woody biomass to ‘drop-in” gasoline.  This Forum will be of value to anybody interested in management of forested landscapes.

The Forum will be held at the Wilcox Community Building (also called the Jones Township Community Center) at 320 Faries St, downtown Wilcox, Pa. 15870.  Preceding the talk will be a no-host social hour from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., and dinner at 6:30 p.m.  The program will start immediately after dinner.  Reservations are required!  No reservations will be accepted after Thursday, April 4.  For reservations, contact the Allegheny Hardwood Utilization Group, PO Box 133, Kane, Pa., 16735, at 814-837-8550, or e-mail bcarson@ahug.com.

The April 11, 2024 Roach-Bauer Forestry Forum is pleased to announce they will host two businesses for the upcoming Forum on Innovations in Low Grade Wood Materials, and an update from the Pennsylvania Hardwoods Development Council (HDC).  Jonathan Geyer from the Pennsylvania HDC, Royce Novosel-Johnson, AJ McGarity, and Lindsey Novosel from Woodside Oils, and Luca Pandolfi from Woodland Biomass Innovations will be featured speakers. 

Jonathan Geyer is the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania HDC, and will concentrate on “How Innovations in Wood Utilization Fuel Sustainable Forest Management.”  Jonathan will set the stage about changes occurring in Pennsylvania’s forests, the need for viable ongoing markets to promote best practices in wood harvest, and how specific grant programs support market development.

Jonathan graduated from Juniata College in 2016 with a B.S. in Environmental Science.  He became the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania HDC in 2022, and leads the Department’s efforts in promoting, expanding, developing, and educating on the Commonwealth forest products industries.  Previously, Jonathan was the Assistant Director, Hardwoods Development Specialist, and PA WoodMobile Coordinator.  Jonathan now lives in Duncannon, Pa., with his family and enjoys everything outdoors, especially archery hunting and exploring with his daughter.

Woodside Oils team Royce Novosel-Johnson, AJ McGarity, and Lindsey Novosel will follow Jonathan’s presentation. Woodside Oils opened in April of 2023 in Kane, Pa., and are the world’s first commercial mass producer of pure, all-natural birch oil made from the bark of black birch available on the Allegheny Plateau.  Woodside Oils is owned and operated by doTERRA, the largest essential oil company in the world, based out of Utah.

Royce Novosel-Johnson, Procurement Specialist for Woodside Oils stated, “Birch has always been cut, just not fully utilized.  We are the world’s first commercial-scale birch distillery to produce 100% pure birch oil.  There are no synthetic materials.”  AJ McGarity, General Manager of Woodside Oils says, “We work with people who take care of the forest’s health.  We’re proud to make wise use of the forest’s resources, add important value for the forests, and deliver a 100% pure Birch essential oil to the world.”  Lindsey Novosel, a Kane native, serves as the Operations Manager, and is the Chemist behind the scenes that operates and monitors the process to produce a pure, natural product for the public to utilize.

 Luca Pandolfi is the Founder of Woodland Biomass Innovations, a business that will be producing a sustainable transportation fuel from low grade woody materials.  Luca and his team have developed a process to convert woody biomass into ‘drop-in’ gasoline, and they are currently navigating the channels required to bring this concept to fruition.  The biomass-to-fuel process will produce gasoline identical to existing fossil fuel sources, meaning that the gasoline will work with our current vehicles and infrastructure, hence a ‘drop-in’ product.  Luca will discuss the Woodland Biomass Innovations concept, and the market/forest management needs that their process can help to address.

Luca Pandolfi graduated from Ithaca College in 2014, and started his entrepreneurship career by winning the Ithaca College Business Idea Competition in 2013 using his concept for a biomass-to-fuel system that had been refined over a year of independent research.  After graduating, Luca went on to work for a variety of companies, large and small, working in sales, marketing, and business development.  In 2019, he revisited the biomass-to-fuel idea and started working in earnest to bring Woodland Biomass Innovations to life with a proof-of-concept facility in Tioga, Pa.    

Society of American Foresters’ Continuing Forestry Education credits will be applied for this presentation.