Welcome to Vancouver On behalf of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada and its members, please allow me this opportunity to welcome you to the beautiful city of Vancouver and WPAC’s 2013 conference and annual general meeting. Although our association and industry are relatively young, sustainable harvesting of timber and conversion to its various commodities has been going on in this area and across Canada for more than 150 years. In 1865, this beautiful seascape was simply known as the village of Gastown and its main employer was Hastings Sawmills. Though sawmills have dotted this region for over a century, it took the pioneering vision and determination of one family (John, Rob and Jim Swaan) to turn the mills’ residual waste into a viable commodity. Since the first shipment of bulk wood pellets to Sweden 15 years ago, British Columbia’s wood pellet industry has grown and evolved to become a truly national industry that is globally recognized and respected. We owe much of this success to the guidance and leadership of Gordon Murray, executive director of WPAC, and to the tireless efforts of many other association members. Under WPAC’s mandate and unbiased approach, I’m proud to highlight some of the association’s successes: • Growth from nine member companies in 2009 to 73 companies in 2013 and the establishment of WPAC as a truly national trade association; • Four-fold growth in export shipments from the East and West coasts since 2009; • Global recognition of Canadian wood pellet producers with respect to quality, reliability and sustainability; • Strong relationships with federal and provincial governments in Canada; • Co-operation with European power utilities and other international pellet associations in standardizing pellet quality standards, spot contracts and sustainability criteria; • Lobbying in the United Kingdom and the European Union regarding Canadian wood pellet sustainability; • Ongoing work to improve access to fibre for producers in Western Canada; • Co-operation amongst members to improve the shipping logistics from Eastern Canada to Europe; • Developments on the regulatory front in Canada that should open the door to wood pellet co-firing in Canadian coal power plants; • Both a co-firing study and a wood pellet emissions study in Canada for the purpose of policy direction regarding co-firing; • Proof of the phytosanitary nature of wood pellets for export; • Initial work to grow our domestic heat market; • Establishment of Enplus and CANplus quality certification in Canada. We hope that you enjoy your time here in Vancouver. Please remember that we all have a valuable stake in our association, so please get involved and stay involved. Very best regards, Robert Tarčon, Chairman, President Wood Pellet Association of Canada.