Severe wildfires kill trees. Scores of them. As all forestry professionals already know, managing the immediate and long-term hazards associated with these dead trees has proven to be one of the most expensive and difficult parts of post-wildfire reforestation operations. Just as charred campfire logs more easily ignite, this wood acts as a tinderbox ready to fuel the next fire.
With no alternative uses or value, many landowners resort to stockpiling and burning these unmerchantable logs to reduce wildfire fuel on their property. In some states, gathering and burning is officially recommended by public agencies as a post-fire land management practice. While this practice reduces the risk of fueling future fires, it also releases greenhouse gases and negatively impacts local air quality, especially when multiple landowners burn in the same seasonal windows.
This illustration demonstrates the sequence of our biomass burial projects from piling logs for burial, to the buried logs beneath the soil, to the reforestation and long-term monitoring.
A Market-First in Carbon Removal
Mast just announced a market-first project that combines the burial of these burned trees, known as biomass, with reforestation, fueled by our recently announced Series B funding. Our geotechnically designed, anoxic (oxygen-limited) ‘chambers’ halt the decomposition of the buried wood, turning fire-killed trees into a durable carbon sink, generating restorative carbon removal credits that can be retired in early 2026, with lasting co-benefits resulting from the restoration of native, resilient forests.
Pile burning of wildfire-killed trees is a common practice by landowners, and recommended in the State of Montana, to reduce future fuel. (Source: California BLM)
A win for carbon buyers
Carbon buyers want a credit that can be retired for their 2030 climate targets––or sooner. When we bury this unusable wood, we’re efficiently removing the carbon that trees have captured over decades from the atmospheric cycle. No long-haul trucking or complex infrastructure required. This allows us to offer durable CDRs at a highly competitive price point compared to DAC or biochar, and allows us to attain underground sequestration with the great co-benefits of reforestation. We are answering one of the most pressing challenges in climate action: how to restore forests faster and durably sequester more carbon.
A win for landowners
Landowners want their forests back. Our biomass burial + reforestation services are helping landowners reduce fire and safety risks on their properties and fund reforestation that would otherwise be cost prohibitive. This is where Mast has always been focused, and good word of mouth spreads fast among neighbors. There are 2.3 million tonnes of dead, burned trees (this would fill more than 57,500 logging trucks) estimated across Montana alone from recent wildfires in the last four years.
Introducing Mast’s Flagship Wood Preserve
Mast is working with a family landowner outside of Billings, Montana who lost more than 60% of their forest to the July 2021 Poverty Flats Fire. Over 2025, the Mast team will bury unusable, dead trees that the landowner has stockpiled and intended to burn. The project will generate up to an estimated 30,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits for retirement as early as 2026––now available for presale. Credit sales will also directly fund Mast’s restoration of hundreds of acres on the same property.
Our crews will replant native conifers such as Ponderosas where they grew before the fire at the naturally low densities found in this ecosystem, as well as native deciduous species and shrubs in the lower elevation ravines, recreating a mosaic of diverse habitats across the landscape. These restoration activities will ensure resilient ecological benefits are realized while further contributing to non-credited carbon sequestration.
Smoke observed by a Mast employee during a site visit, area pile burning was active at the time by multiple landowners leaving a haze of smoke over the community.
Key Project Details (Mast Wood Preserve MT1):
- Location: Central Montana
- CDR Volume: Up to 30,000 tonnes of durable credits through 2026
- Reforestation: Native ponderose pine and deciduous species will be replanted across hundreds of acres of the landscape that were destroyed by wildfire
- Third-party Due Diligence: Phase 1 submitted for a BeZero rating
- Methodology: Puro.earth Terrestrial Storage of Biomass
Our biomass burial + reforestation project sites are located hundreds of miles from facilities that might be capable of repurposing this high volume of burned wood for lumber, biochar, or energy production; onsite burial was the only alternative option to pile burning in order to sequester this carbon. Mast’s conservative accounting under the Puro.earth carbon registry ensures appropriate baseline, additionality, leakage, and operational emissions are addressed.
Meeting Carbon Buyers' Needs
Mast’s restorative carbon removal credits address the key concerns of today’s carbon buyers:
- Additionality: By burying biomass that would otherwise be burned, Mast ensures that the credits represent real, measurable carbon removal.
- Durability: The site is protected under an endowed 100-year easement to ensure repairs and monitoring are funded and continue throughout the project’s duration. The burial site prevents the release of carbon dioxide for a minimum of 100 years, with research and modeling indicating preservation for as long as 3,000 years.
- Market Leakage: Mast intentionally is not burying any wood that is merchantable and has the potential for any other uses, nor is there any long-term land use change associated with our projects.
- Co-Benefits: In addition to sequestering carbon, Mast’s restoration of native conifer forests reestablishes biodiversity, improves soil health, and enhances ecosystem services such as water filtration, flood control, and habitat restoration.
- Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) To ensure the integrity of its carbon removal process, Mast employs rigorous Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) protocols. Advanced sensors will monitor subterranean conditions, tracking metrics such as water vapor, temperature, and methane levels. Periodic site visits and surface monitoring provide additional oversight, ensuring long-term storage and stable environmental conditions.
A view of Mast's first restorative carbon removal project in central Montana, including the Mast Wood Preserve MT1 burial site and hundreds of acres that will be restored to their native, pre-wildfire state.
A win for North American forests
Scaling resilient reforestation is our north star. Mast has pioneered this carbon removal pathway to bring much needed market revenue to the critical task of restoring native, biodiverse North American forests lost to wildfire. Without Mast’s work, it would take at least 50 years to restore the 6 million acres that have already been lost relying on limited public funding and timber-focused supply chains. Catalytic carbon investment can permanently remove this tonnage from the carbon cycle and bring these ecosystems back to life.
“Wildfire-destroyed trees pose both a hazard and an opportunity,” said Grant Canary, CEO of Mast Reforestation. “By burying this biomass, we remove carbon that would have been released, clear the way for new seedlings to thrive, and reduce the risk of these trees fueling future wildfires. This advancement takes us to the next frontier of scaling responsible reforestation and carbon removal in a way that’s never been done before.”
Change the Pace of Reforestation with Mast
Mast’s innovative approach to combining biomass burial and reforestation is setting a new standard for scalable, durable carbon removal and forest recovery. Together, we can redefine what’s possible for our forests and our planet.
Connect with us to learn more about biomass burial and restorative carbon removal credits.
Sign up for our newsletter to stay updated on our work and impact.