Pioneer Millworks, RIT receive EPA grants aimed at sustainable construction

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Pioneer Millworks of Farmington and Rochester Institute of Technology have received grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that are aimed at reducing future greenhouse gas emissions in the construction industry.

The EPA awarded 38 grants totaling $160 million nationwide to support businesses that manufacture construction materials and products to develop and verify Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), or institutions that assist in such business ventures.

Pioneer Millworks will receive $302,300 to develop EPDs for reclaimed and sustainably harvested wood flooring and paneling manufactured in the U.S. and to quantify their environmental advantages over existing EPDs.

Development of a education plan is part of the program which “will ensure that best practices and lessons learned are communicated both within and beyond the wood products industry to promote the expansion and use of these types of EPDs,” the EPA said in a news release.

Pioneer Millworks will leverage its expertise in reclaimed and sustainable wood and intends to establish the environmental and marketing benefits of using more sustainable content and minimizing unhealthy chemicals in wood products.

The company will hire a sustainability manager and develop webinars, presentations and articles “to disseminate the knowledge gained, with the goal of helping other small firms benefit from this endeavor and drive industry-wide adoption of more robust EPDs,” the EPA said.

“We are honored to be selected for this investment the federal government is making in reducing climate impacts through the built environment,” Pioneer Millworks CEO and founder Jonathan Orpin said. “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.”

RIT’s Golisano Institute for Sustainability has been awarded $1,298,635 to assist small construction material manufacturers who recapture “waste” to create new materials and products.

The initiative includes conducting a webinar for construction material manufacturers disseminating project results to industry practitioners architects, builders and other stakeholders.

By providing technical assistance and conducting lifecycle assessments, the initiative seeks to promote a more circular economy, reduce landfill waste, conserve natural resources and lower embodied carbon, the EPA said.

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