Local Pioneer Millworks is one of 38 Companies Selected for EPA Grant
(Rochester, NY | July 17, 2024) Pioneer Millworks, a Rochester-based manufacture of sustainable and reclaimed wood flooring, paneling, and siding has been selected by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) for a grant titled “IRA NOFO for Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Construction Materials and Products”. This grant will provide funding for Pioneer Millworks to create Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for its products. EPDs are transparency documentation that allow consumers to see the full impact a product has on the environment from sourcing of material to shipping of product to what happens to the product when it is no longer needed (or “end of life”).
“This grant gives us the ability to create EPDs, so that our clients can view the full environmental impact of Pioneer Millworks wood products,” says Michele Caryl, Acquisitions & Environmental Certifications Manager for Pioneer Millworks. “Being able to analyze and document the full life cycle of our products with full documentation. This will show clients the benefits of choosing an environmentally supportive material and manufactured for their spaces.”
The EPA has selected Pioneer Millworks over thousands of applicants, and the local company is among 38 grantees who will receive part of the approximately $160 million. This money is part of the Inflation Reduction Act programs that were part of the $350 million for grants, technical assistance and tools, including carbon labeling, to help manufacturers, institutional buyers, real estate developers, builders and others measure, report and substantially lower the levels of embodied carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions associated with all relevant stages of production, use and disposal of construction materials.
“We’re excited to go above and beyond for this grant and measure the impact of our materials not just on planet health, but human health,” says Caryl. “What materials you choose in your space, and how they break down over time can impact the indoor air quality, and ultimately influence your personal health. Our goal is to create the most planet and human friendly wood building materials we can.”
Pioneer Millworks will use the grant monies over the next 5 years, along with its own investments, to hire staff, develop a program, and set measures for its products life-cycle analysis. They will use this information to improve the planet and human impacts of its products as well as report the impacts to the public through third-party certified EPDs.
The company already has many certifications for its products including UL Greengard Gold certification for noxious chemical off gassing, HPDs (Health Product Declarations) for transparency in ingredients and is/was the first reclaimed wood company to receive FSC Chain-of-custody certification. Pioneer Millworks is one of a handful of truly sustainable wood flooring, paneling, and siding manufactures in the United States investing thousands of dollars into improving the planet and people impacts of its USA-made products and employee-owned mills.
“We are honored to be selected in for this investment the federal government is making in reducing climate impacts through the built environment,” says CEO and founder Jonathan Orpin. “We know that we need more housing in the United States, and that our houses/buildings when built with intentional materials and methods can help to reduce the impacts on our climate. Buildings can help fight climate change, be a place of respite and comfort, and not strain our energy systems and wallets. We just need to change what materials we use to build with — using wood, which is what we do here — is one of those changes a person can make. We’re happy to be able to use this grant money to show folks the full impact Pioneer Millworks products have on people and planet.”
ABOUT PIONEER MILLWORKS
Pioneer Millworks was founded in the Finger Lakes Region of New York in the early 1990s as a company reclaiming industrial and agricultural timbers for use in timber frame buildings. The company has since grown to over 100 coworkers, with mills in Farmington, New York and McMinnville, Oregon, that supply commercial and residential clients throughout North America with sustainable and reclaimed wood flooring, paneling, and siding. The company became 100% employee-owned through an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) in 2018 and was #13 of Rochester Chamber of Commerce Top 100 Companies in 2023. For more, visit www.PioneerMillworks.com
For more information on the IRA NOFO for Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Construction Materials and Products grant see: https://www.epa.gov/inflation-reduction-act/inflation-reduction-act-programs-fight-climate-change-reducing-embodied.
For the EPA’s press release, including a full list of those selected for funding, visit: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/biden-harris-administration-announces-nearly-160-million-grants-support-clean-us.