BIOMASS update SCS ISSUES FIRST CERTIFICATES TO DRAX BIOMASS S CS Global Services has issued its first first Sus-tainable Biomass Partnership (SBP) certificates to Drax Biomass Inc., for its Morehouse BioEnergy and Amite BioEner-gy wood pellet manufacturing facilities in the U.S. Pete Madden, president and CEO of Drax Biomass Inc., said in a news release the certifica-tions mark a major milestone in the company’s quest to become a leading supplier of sustainably-sourced, high quality wood pellets. Both Drax facilities are each equipped to produce up to 450,000 metric tonnes of wood pellets per year from Southern Yellow Pine sourced primarily from nearby privately-owned working forests. Drax gathers and stores thinnings, low-value round-wood, and harvesting residues, which are then debarked and chipped. The company screens the woodchips for size consistency, then dries and further process-es the chips into compressed pellets of uniform moisture, ash content and calorific value. SCS’s assessment included a comprehensive evaluation of each stage of the sourcing and manufacturing process, as well as an audit of Drax Biomass’s Baton Rouge Transit storage and shipping facility. SCS was accepted as an applicant Certification Body for the SBP in April last year, and successfully completed the SBP approval process in June. The approval included SBP independently observing the Drax Biomass facility audit conducted by SCS. “SCS Global Services cleared a rigorous and robust approval process to become an SBP-approved Certification Body, offering worldwide cer-tifications of biomass producer and biomass supply chain actors,” Carsten Huljus, SBP CEO, said in the release. “We’re delighted to have earned SBP’s approval as a third-party certifier, and con-gratulate Drax Biomass for its important accomplishment,” Dr. Robert J. Hrubes, SCS ex-ecutive vice-president, noted in the release. “SBP certification is playing an increasingly vital role to ensure that biomass production is conducted in a responsible manner. As this certification demonstrates, Drax Biomass takes its commit-ment to sustainable production principles seriously.” BUSINESSES SHOULD REDUCE EMISSIONS: SURVEY A large majority of Canadians think that it is important for busi-nesses to take action to reduce their transportation-related emis-sions, according to the 2016 Sustainable Business Attitudes Survey. The survey found that 82 per cent of Canadians felt that the use of environmentally-friendly transportation, such as electric or hybrid vehicles or using green fuels like biodiesel, would be important in their decision to recommend a business. The survey also reports that 56 per cent said it was “very important” and 34 per cent said “somewhat important” that businesses using vehicles, such as company cars, delivery trucks or long-distance tractor trailers, make efforts to reduce emis-sions from those sources. The Sustainable Business Attitudes Survey was commis-sioned by Bullfrog Power and performed by Environics Research from Aug. 8 to 21, 2016, reaching 2,000 adult Canadians. B.C. TO ADDRESS FOREST SECTOR COMPETITIVENESS The provincial government has released its agenda to enhance the competitiveness of B.C.’s forest sector so that it continues to make investments and provide family-supporting jobs in com-munities throughout the province. The agenda called “Strong Past, Bright Future” contains 49 strategic actions to address three key inter-related goals: healthy, resilient forests; diverse, globally competitive industry; and stable communities and First Nations. The agenda is supported by other recent government pro-grams, including the three-year $75-million Rural Dividend and $85 million for the newly created Forest Enhancement Society of B.C. Among other key action in the plan is advancing opportuni-ties for forest carbon management and promoting greater use of lower-value wood and wood residue in support of the province’s climate leadership goals. Alberta pledges support for new renewable energy The Alberta government announced a firm target of 30 per cent of electricity used in the province coming from renew-able sources by 2030. Shannon Phillips, Minister of Envi-ronment and Parks and Minister for the Climate Change Office, said to achieve the 30 by ‘30 goal, the government will support 5,000 megawatts of new renewable energy in the province. The ministry estimates that the commitment will amount to at least $10.5 billion in new investment by 2030, which will translate to at least 7,200 jobs from new projects. To meet the target, the province has created a Renewable Electricity Program. The program will be run by the Alberta Electric System Operator. OCTOBER 2016 6 Canadian BIOMASS
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