Rice straw plant was a long time in the making

Sierra Nevada’s Big Room is a huge area, fitting a multitude of guests. Earlier this month it was stuffed, but not for the usual entertainment events or fundraisers.

Practically every seat was filled with individuals who in some way linked to CalPlant 1, the proposed medium-density fiberboard plant to be built near Willows.

It was a celebration hosted by the company heads, and certainly marked a point in time of importance to the region.

The significance of the plant is that it will use rice straw, a fairly useless agricultural byproduct, to create fiberboard, a material used in building construction and furniture.

Reportedly, the rice straw fiberboard plant will be the first in the world.

Rice is an economic pillar of the north state, with thousands of acres planted annually. It is one of the top crops for Butte County and Glenn County, where the plant will be built.

What’s left over after the harvest — the rice straw, or stalks — is another matter.

It is a problem. California has banned all but the most limited amount of straw burning because of air pollution.

Growers found other ways to deal with the rice straw, including plowing it under and flooding fields so that it rotted.

That’s not the most efficient way to deal with rice straw, but it was the best available, growers agreed.

Now, there is another possible option — selling to the fiberboard plant. It’s an environmentally friendly option.

As organizers pointed out, it took more than 20 years from the hatching of the idea to the finishing of financing.

Right now, groundbreaking is slated for September, and we hope that happens smoothly.

So do many more than the 200-plus people enjoying the Sierra Nevada evening.

There were government officials. There were attorneys.

There were financiers and financial gurus. There were rice experts and growers and suppliers.

Business advisers, equipment manufacturers and detail people were scattered throughout.

To the eye, the array of supporters was astounding, but the process they represented — the hours of work and research, the thousands of trials and errors, the route of unfolding a new idea — was even more impressive.

Sad that it took so long to get to this point, but glad it wasn’t 30 years. Like others around the north state and throughout the country, we’re anxious to see what’s next.