BIOMASS SUPPLY CHAIN RISK STANDARD BECOMES AN OFFICIAL STANDARD IN CANADA The first edition of CSA W209 has been developed in compliance with Standards Council of Canada requirements for National Standards of Canada. It has been published as a National Standard of Canada by CSA Group. It provides requirements, recommendations and guidance for understanding the potential risks to biomass supply chains, including the following risk categories and associated risk factors: • supplier risk • competitor risk • supply chain risk • feedstock quality risk • feedstock scale-up risk • internal organizational risk The Biomass Supply Chain Risk Standard – published by the CSA Group – has become an official Canadian standard. The Standard applies to activities starting at the harvest point and ending at the plant gate. INDIGENOUS COALITION AND CLEAN ENERGY COMPANY PARTNER FOR NET-ZERO GHG PROJECTS Touchwood Agency Tribal Council (TATC) and Rainforest Energy Corp. (RFEC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the joint evaluation and develop-ment of clean energy in the TATC member territory. TATC members include Day Star, George Gordon, Kawakatoose, and Muskowekwan First Nations in Saskatchewan. The feasibility evaluation will be conducted to site a $250-million clean energy project at Punnichy, Sask. It involves the conversion of Indigenous-sourced waste biomass and natural gas into 87 million litres-per-year of low-carbon gasoline, jet fuel and propane. Straw, hemp residue, logging slash, and additional sources that would otherwise be burned or left to decay, thereby avoiding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, are among the biomass to be evaluated. Air emissions associated with incinerating biomass to produce electricity are avoid-ed in the process. RFEC is currently in offtake discussions with major crude oil refin-ers which need low-carbon fuel output to blend down its fossil fuel sales to meet the Canadian Clean Fuel Standard. RFEC’s other projects will be evaluated by TATC for the consideration of participating alongside other Indigenous nations. “We are pleased to see an opportunity to walk the talk on protecting Mother Earth,” Rod Favel, economic development program manager of TATC, said. “The 40 permanent jobs at each clean energy facility and the potential 250 additional jobs with connected ventures will make a difference in our communities.” BIOMASS PLANT ALLOWING SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY TO REDUCE ITS GHG HEATING EMISSIONS Simon Fraser University is on track to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent from heating. The re-duction in emissions is about the same as the emissions each year from 900 homes. Driving the emissions reduc-tion is a $33-million Corix biomass plant that has just started operating. The Burnaby, B.C., biomass plant turns clean wood waste that would have otherwise gone to a landfill into a low-carbon source of energy. The plant will help the university achieve its sustainability plan targets. DRAX, BECHTEL WORKING TOGETHER ON BIOMASS PLANTS WITH CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE Bechtel, a noted power plant engineering and construction leader, has entered into an agreement with Drax to create bioenergy with carbon capture and stor-age (BECCS) plants globally. Drax has already converted its power station in North Yorkshire, England from coal to biomass, and considers it Europe’s largest decarbonization project. Bechtel is focused upon strategically important regions in North America and Western Europe for building new BECCS plants, and is reviewing ways to optimize the design of a BECCS plant using state-of-the-art engineering to achieve maximize efficiency, performance and cost. RESOLUTE WINS INNOVATION AWARD FOR TMP-BIO PLANT Resolute Forest Products has won an innovation award for its thermome-chanical pulp (TMP) biorefinery in Thunder Bay, Ont. The company received the silver Edison Award in the manufacturing, logistics and transportation category. The Edison Awards celebrate in-novative global products, services and business leaders. Resolute partnered with FPInnovations on the TMP-Bio plant’s patented technology, developed for the commercial production of large quantities of bio-sourced chemicals. Canadian BIOMASS 7
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