conceived. It soon became clear that no matter how much planning went into their efforts, there would be unexpected bumps in the road. “We did our approximations of how much waste there would be, and built a bunker that was 110 feet wide by 200 feet long. We placed our Rotochopper on top of that, and we built bunkers to house the materials,” Siemens explained. Despite these efforts, Siemens con-ceded that South-East built the bunker too small. Enter the federal and provincial govern-ments, which will provide up to $500,000 to the 12 chosen projects to help promote environmentally friendly alternatives to coal. The funding for the South-East project will go towards expanding the size of their biomass bunker, as well as the con-struction of an overhead roof, which will help protect the materials from weather conditions. Taken together, these im-provements should help the company double its annual biomass producing ca-pacity. “There are renewable energy resources readily available for use as biomass energy sources,” said Ron Kostyshyn, Manitoba’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development. “By increasing our capa-city to make and use green energy we are reducing carbon emissions in Mani-toba while promoting the growth of new industry.” The generosity and support of the fed-eral and provincial governments is not lost on Siemens, who has a new appre-ciation for the difficulty of entering the biomass industry. “As we’re new to the market, we’re finding that there’s a lot of opportuni-ty, but also a lot of cost to get into the market,” he said. “You have to buy the equipment, and you have to set the pro-cess right.” Despite the challenges, Siemens sees a lot of value and a great deal of potential in the ongoing growth of biomass. “There’s certainly a market, especially with the number of businesses in Man-itoba that have to get away from coal,” he said. “A lot of them are moving into biomass. If natural gas isn’t an option for them, they’re moving to biomass over electricity. So we do know that there will be an increase in need for more biomass The funding provided is targeted at environmentally-friendly alternatives to coal. coming up.” For their part, the federal government is quick to recognize both the environ-mental and economic benefits this type of sponsorship has the potential to affect. “Making investments that promote the use and development of clean and sustain-able technology and processes is a priority for the Government of Canada,” said Law-rence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. “Promoting the use of re-newable biomass fuels also generates new economic opportunities for processors and producers.” Other projects that will receive funding include the conversion of two coal-burning energy systems into bio-mass, and the improvement of an on-site storage facility for finished biomass fuels at Spruce Products Ltd. in Swan River. • THE BOSS HEAVILY FAVORED EVERY TIME. 3010F TUB GRINDER • Turns stumps, logs, branches, pallets and green waste into mulch or compost in no time • CAT C15 475 hp or 540 hp Tier III diesel engine Call today or visit us online to learn more. • Outfitted with a 26’ oscillating stacking conveyor 888-402-4638 www.duratech.info View products in action on our YouTube channel! Canadian BIOMASS CBM_MarApr16_Duratech_CSA.indd 1 15 2016-03-03 3:11 PM
Canadian Biomass March April 2016: Page 15
