Turning waste into a solution his year’s Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC) Conference and AGM was unlike any other, taking place online from Sept. 22 to Sept. 24. Thanks to COVID-19, Canadian Biomass and WPAC had to pivot to bring the annual conference to life in a way that would be safe for everyone: virtually. Like many oth-er organizations now know, putting on a virtual event is quite different from a live event. While networking opportunities are limited on a virtual platform, the up-side is that the conference can reach a wider audience. In fact, nearly 500 people from around the world at-tended this year’s conference to learn more about wood pellets as a source of “Re-sponsible, Renewable Clean Energy” – WPAC’s new tagline. The event was a huge success, with many attendees providing positive feedback and asking for copies of the speakers’ presentations to share with their colleagues. The main takeaway for me was just how much potential there is for turning waste into a solution, to borrow the phrase from Jason Fisher, vice-president of strategic partnerships and corporate responsibility at Pinnacle Renewable Energy and one of the presenters at this year’s event. As the effects of climate change become more obvious and negatively impact society, investors and government will have to recognize and con-front the uncertainty it brings. This means they will be looking for stable, sustainable sources of energy, such as wood pellets, William Strauss, president and founder of FutureMetrics, said in his presentation (read more about the conference on page 5). It’s evident that more and more investors, particularly government, have started rec-BIOMASS CANADIAN Volume 20 No. 4 Editor -Ellen Cools (416) 510-6766 [email protected] Contributors -Gordon Murray, Guillaume Roy, Peter Diekmeyer, Rob van Adrichem, PJ Boyd Group Publisher -Todd Humber 416-510-5248 [email protected] Account Coordinator -Stephanie DeFields Ph: (519) 429-5196 [email protected] National Sales Manager -Rebecca Lewis Ph: (519) 400-0332 [email protected] Quebec Sales -Josée Crevier Ph: (514) 425-0025 Fax: (514) 425-0068 [email protected] Western Sales Manager -Tim Shaddick [email protected] Ph: (604) 264-1158 Fax: (604) 264-1367 Media Designer -Curtis Martin Circulation Manager – Jay Doshi [email protected] Ph: (416) 442-5600 ext. 5124 COO Scott Jamieson [email protected] Canadian Biomass is published four times a year: Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Published and printed by Annex Business Media. 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No liability is assumed for errors or omissions. All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication. Investors are recognizing the potential of the bioeconomy T ognizing the potential of the bioeconomy in the past year or two. William Bardosh, CEO of TerraVerdae Bioworks, remembers when this wasn’t the case. When the company started in 2009, the idea of producing nat-ural biodegradable bioplastics was “quaint” to many people, and there was little invest-ment or capital, he says. But, the company recently received $4.5 mil-lion in grants from several groups, including Natural Resources Canada, to ex-pand its ability to develop natural, biodegradable bio-plastics. “I’m really amazed at the shift that’s gone on over the last 18-24 months,” he says on page 16. More recently, in August, the federal government an-nounced $1.3 million in funding for FPInnovations to develop disposable, biodegradable face masks to protect against COVID-19. On page 14, Doug Singbeil, FPInnovation’s in-dustrial sector leader for bioproducts, says this project proves the forest industry and bioeconomy can help Canada through the pandemic, and helps the industry contin-ue to find ways to make sustainable, bio-sourced products. Moving forward, it’s critical that govern-ment continue to support the bioeconomy and make it a key part of Canada’s low-car-bon future. With associations like WPAC advocating for our industry and raising awareness about wood pellets’ role in fight-ing climate change, I feel confident we will continue to see growing support and invest-ment from decision-makers. • www.canadianbiomassmagazine.ca 4 Canadian BIOMASS FALL 2020
Canadian Biomass Fall 2020: Page 4
