WPAC is committed to being among the most inclusive and successful trade associations by actively seeking diversity across the industry. storage at the terminal, but only 6,000-7,000 tons, so almost 10,000 tons had to be stored in rail cars. So John contacted CN Rail, who had a rail line to Prince Rupert. He negotiated a rate agreement and monthly lease with terms that were good by today’s standards. Working with a Swedish Canadian, Staffan Melin, they were able to convince an Asian shipping company to take on a bulk cargo of wood pellets. At the time, no one had moved wood pellets this way. The fact is that John risked everything to send a single shipment to Sweden. “If it weren’t for John – his determi-nation and his knowledge and expertise – we wouldn’t be where we are today,” says Vaughan Bassett, past president of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC) and senior vice-president sales and logistics at Drax PLC. “He didn’t launch just a vessel, he launched a new sector, one that has gained global support as a clean, renewable and responsible source of energy and is making a positive difference in our forests, our communities and in the fight against climate change.” The fact is John’s expertise is hard won and a combination of many tough lessons along the way that have been forged out of determination in the face of desperation; these lessons have helped to create and support the multibillion-dollar wood pellet industry we all know today. We recently paid tribute to John at our annual WPAC Conference, Sept. 19-20 in Ottawa. But with a conference theme of “Biomass is Mainstream: The Next 25 Years: Opportunity & Innovation,” we didn’t just look back, we looked forward. The next generation of products will shift traditional views of wood pellets. That means giving Canadians more choic-es when it comes to renewable energy; in Europe it means taking the wins we’ve seen on the commercial and residential side to more industrial heat and displacing the reliance on Russian natural gas; and in the United States, it’s flying planes with sustainable aviation fuels and globally supporting the transition to green hydro-gen and ammonia. In Europe and Japan, we can turn older coal plants into co-firing so they, too, can benefit from the flexibili -ty that wood pellets provide. While our export markets will always be important, we are turning our focus to here at home to provide a responsible solution to local energy needs where coal, oil and other fossil fuels are still being used. Making the shift from oil and coal-based heat and electricity to wood pellets in Canada will take three simple steps: the right policies, strong incentives and effective communications. In Canada’s North and the Maritimes, there is already a shift to renewable energy for both com-mercial and home applications. We need to continue to support this evolution by working together with governments and agencies to encourage biomass use. With all these opportunities, our abili-ty to meet the growing demand for wood pellets will require stable access to fibre, ongoing investment, a strong logistics network, the right equipment, safe work-places and the right people. Our people are the foundation of our success. WPAC is committed to being among the most in-clusive and successful trade associations by actively seeking diversity across the industry. The Canadian wood pellet industry has a critical role to play in the global fight against climate change. I look for -ward to seeing what ingenuity the Ca-nadian biomass industry brings over the next 25 years. With the planet getting hotter and climate disasters worsening, if there ever was a time to be creative, it’s now. • Gordon Murray is the executive director of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada. Brunette BioSizer ® HIGH-SPEED GRINDER – Consistent, Uniform Product – Extreme-Duty Swing-Away Anvil – Fixed Strikers for Maximum Bite – Single Bolt Reversible Strikers – Processes a Variety of Materials VERSATILE GRINDING Green Hog Fuel Results Green Pulp Chip Results Performance • Reliability • Recovery 1-800-686-6679 [email protected] www.brunettemc.com Canadian BIOMASS 9
Canadian Biomass Fall 2023: Page 9
