On March 28, the Ontario government completed its Forest Biomass Action Plan, which supports economic prospects for exploiting forest biomass energy in innovative and diverse ways, such as low-carbon consumer goods and renewables. In May 2021, a proposed plan of action was made available for public discussion.
“Innovative uses of forestry biomass will create new sources of renewable and environmentally friendly products and ways of doing business,” said Greg Rickford, Minister of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry, Biomass Magazine quoted him saying.
“Our government’s Forest Biomass Action Plan will secure forestry jobs across the north and ensure our province has the materials we need to Build Ontario.”
The five-year action plan’s main objectives are to create jobs, assist economic growth, and contribute to the sustainability in the forest industry by utilizing Ontario’s forestry biomass.
The government devised five objectives to help them achieve their aims. Identifying routes to markets for biomass, supporting demand for forest bioenergy and bioproducts, improving the business and regulatory environments for the use of forestry biomass, supporting “holistic, culturally relevant pathways for Indigenous community involvement in biomass value chains to support reconciliation between Indigenous communities and the Crown,” and communicating, collaborating, and informing on the possibilities are among the goals. The Ontario government has also defined a number of particular activities to assist each of the goals.
Forest biofiber and mill wastes are the two forms of biomass targeted by the proposal. Forest biofiber is made up of forest resources that aren’t generally utilized for traditional forest products and are derived from private woodlots and other wooded properties in Ontario, or from Ontario’s provincial forests under an authorized forestry management plan. Mill byproducts include bark, shavings, and sawdust, which are produced during the processing of forest products.