Waste straw burned on wheat fields is one of Washington’s top sources of air pollution. Columbia Pulp purchases this straw to produce pulp and bio-polymers, creating a new revenue stream for wheat farmers that would typically go up in smoke.

Smart, Sustainable Business

Columbia Pulp’s 140,000-square-foot mill has created 100 family wage jobs in the agricultural communities of Dayton, Starbuck and Pomeroy, Washington. Straw purchases from local farmers exceed $15 million dollars every year.

An Economic Engine

Columbia Pulp eliminates the need for farmers to burn 250,000 tons of straw waste every year, improving air quality region-wide. Our state-of-the-art facility and locally-sourced feed stock reduce carbon emissions by 76 percent compared to traditional pulp mills.

Protecting the Environment

Creating a Sustainable Future

Columbia Pulp is North America’s first alternative fiber market pulp mill, using wheat farmers’ waste straw to create pulp for paper products as well as bio-polymers for a variety of industrial uses.

Latest News

Columbia Pulp announces Ag Energy Solutions partnership

STARBUCK—Columbia Pulp LLC and Ag Energy Solutions, Inc have announced an agreement to partner in processing wheat straw from the Columbia Pulp facility through the Ag Energy Solutions biomass processing platform. The output from this processing is a form of high-quality biochar, branded Carbon Logic, to be utilized as a soil amendment proven to increase crop yields in some [...]

Columbia Pulp CEO John Begley to retire

DAYTON—Columbia Pulp is announcing the retirement of John Begley effective September 3. Begley has been CEO of Columbia Pulp since its inception and has led the company through its development, financing, design, construction, and start-up phases, including the time it was shuttered by the COVID 19 pandemic. Read more ...

  • Newly named Columbia Pulp Safety Coordinator Dustin Swartz, left, commutes to the Starbuck Plant from Washtucna, Wash, where he lives with his wife Michelle, right, step-daughter Madelyn Meade and son DJ–due November 28, 2020, not pictured.

Swartz new Safety Coordinator

Newly named Columbia Pulp Safety Coordinator Dustin Swartz, left, commutes to the Starbuck Plant from Washtucna, Wash, where he lives with his wife Michelle, right, step-daughter Madelyn Meade and son DJ–due November 28, 2020, not pictured. STARBUCK– Columbia Pulp, LLC has named Dustin Swartz as Safety Coordinator at the Lyons Ferry plant. Read more ... [...]

Association of Washington Business (AWB)

2018 Operational Excellence Award

Recognizing a company that has a distinctive manufacturing process, including continuous improvement, innovations, lean and six sigma and/or application of high technology.