Panel backs paper mill's biomass grant request

CANTON — Newton Falls Fine Paper Co.'s quest to switch from fuel oil to a biomass energy source got a boost Monday from St. Lawrence County lawmakers.

Members of the Legislature's Finance Committee voted unanimously to support the company's grant application to the Upstate New York Regional Blueprint Fund to purchase a biomass-fired boiler.

"It has a potential to not only save the company a lot of money, but also have a very favorable impact on the environment. We will no longer be burning No. 6 fuel oil," said Donald H. Schnackel, vice president of finance and administration. "Primarily we're looking to reduce the amount of sulfur in the air and mitigate any potential spill problems."

Mr. Schnackel said the company burns 41/2 million to 5 million gallons of fuel a year, which is all brought to the Adirondack mill by truck.

"This is the kind of growth we'd like to see in our county," said Legislator Vernon D. "Sam" Burns, D-Ogdensburg, who is chairman of the Legislature's Economic Development Strategic Planning Committee.

Newton Falls Fine Paper employs 120 full-time workers who make an average salary of $50,850, according to information the company provided to Mr. Burns. Company officials place their annual local economic contribution at $18 million.

The biomass boiler is the first step in a long-term power project at the mill, Mr. Schnackel said. He said the company also plans eventually to install a 10-megawatt generator that the biomass boiler will power.

The two projects are expected to create 15 new jobs at the mill and 80 spin-off jobs in the forestry industry.

"Once we receive approval from our board, it will probably be 12 months from that point before the boiler is operational, so we're looking at a startup in 2011," Mr. Schnackel said.

The state's Empire State Development Corp. administers the Upstate Regional Blueprint Fund. Mr. Schnackel declined to say how much money the company is seeking.