MONTPELIER, Vt.—To offset rising fuel costs, the state has launched a firewood subsidy, hoping to supply low- and moderate-income Vermonters with firewood to fill their woodstoves this winter.

The Douglas administration last month unveiled "Wood Warms," a three-part initiative that will provide a limited supply of firewood. One part relies on a decades-old initiative that the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation is beefing up to meet rising demand.

"We used to be more reliant on our backyards and forests for fuel," says Jonathan Wood, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. "I think we have to head back there in the future. We're kind of going forward into the past."....

....The state also plans to supply dry, split wood to low-income Vermonters who don't qualify for the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. LIHEAP pays 60 percent of winter heating bills, but only covers residents who earn less than 125 percent of the poverty level.

It's unclear how much seasoned wood will be available. Volunteers, the National Guard and possibly even prison crews will split the wood, Wood said.

"The concept is to get the wood from state forests to concentration zones, then get it cut up and sent out to the people who need it," Wood said. "I'm trying to find every stick of wood I can for people to burn this winter."

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