OPENING STATEMENT
In June 2017 the Yukon Chamber of Commerce (YCC) and the Yukon Wood Products Association (YWPA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the objective of providing mutual support to private sector businesses across the Yukon. The MOU has contributed positively to both organizations as a way to improve opportunities for communications as well as community-based business development.
The Yukon depends upon imported fossil fuels for transportation and building heat. The abundant forest resources of the Yukon represent a significant economic development opportunity for a locally sourced energy industry.
The Yukon Biomass Energy Strategy states that Yukon imports approximately 50 million dollars’ worth of fossil fuels to heat buildings. Virtually all of this money leaks out of the Yukon and Canadian economies to the USA. Forest-based biomass energy represents an economic development opportunity for the Yukon to reduce this leakage, and at the same time encourage the growth of the Yukon biomass sector.
By creating policy conditions for entrepreneurial investment in biomass energy the concept of a Yukon based “200 km energy diet” becomes a reality.
Background
Biomass provides the solution to a number of environmental, social and economic problems facing Yukoners. There are two easily identifiable problems facing the Yukon at this time; firstly, the consumption of imported fossil fuels represents a significant leakage of wealth from the Yukon and local community economies. This includes the negative contribution of our energy consumption to harmful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Secondly, there is a growing risk that Yukon communities will experience the consequences of a catastrophic forest fire.
The YWPA has identified that the primary economic value of the Yukon’s forest is in the energy that is stored within them. Unlike the forest industries in southern Canada where the production of biomass energy is residual to lumber production, Yukon would produce energy first and lumber would be a residual byproduct. Biomass is a renewable, carbon neutral, energy source that can be produced within 200 kilometres of the point of consumption. Currently, the biomass industry targets forests that have been damaged by bark beetles and forest fires. The underlying forest management principle is forest renewal and sustainability. The industry is almost exclusively based upon the production of cordwood for consumption in the home heating market. Approximately 20,000 m3 of timber are harvested each year by about 60 commercial harvesting companies. There is an additional 25% waste and residue biomass left in the woods at the cut block that can and should be utilized in the form of wood chips for large-scale biomass boiler systems.
There is growing concern that Yukon communities (particularly Whitehorse, Southern Lakes and Watson Lake) are in grave danger with regard to catastrophic forest fires. The Yukon should undertake forest fuel reduction programs, which will create a large amount of biomass. The economic value of the timber removed from fire smart, pre-fire event control lines and stand conversion operations should be utilized as part of the biomass energy production enterprise. If and when landscape level forest fuel abatement projects occur, the biomass produced should not be given away for free, wasted or burned on site.
Conclusion
There are a number of direct benefits to the Yukon with regard to a logical and strategic approach to heating with renewable carbon-neutral biomass.
Diversification and growth of the Yukon wood products industry, including modern logging operations and manufacture of biomass chips and lumber products. There is potential for a domestically based wood pellet manufacturing business in Yukon once the biomass boiler systems become more popular in the marketplace.
The development of the mechanical trades and businesses in the biomass hydronic systems distributorships, installation and management trades.
Job creation, every job in the bush is a new job in the Yukon; and the money spent on biomass fuels stays in the Yukon. It should be noted that over sixty commercial operators already exist in the territory, cutting about 10,000 cords of wood annually. Several generate the majority of their annual income from this industry.
Reduced heating costs: biomass boilers are more expensive to purchase than fossil fuel boilers, however; the cost of biomass fuel is considerably lower per kWh. It has been estimated that overall cost savings, including amortization of the purchase price of the boiler system, is fully realized within five to eight years of installation.
Air quality and emissions from high-efficiency biomass boilers are as clean as or cleaner than fossil fuel systems. These systems are installed in schools in British Columbia, Oregon and Europe. It should be note that efficiency varies among wood burning technologies.
Biomass will contribute to meeting Canada’s commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 30% in 2030.
It should be noted that this policy does not in any way suggest that the Yukon Chamber of Commerce has placed a higher priority on biomass renewable energy over the development of other renewable energy. It is the intention of the chamber to support the development of Biomass energy as one of many renewable green energy solutions for the Yukon.
THE CHAMBER RECOMMENDS
The Yukon Chamber of Commerce recommends that:
YCC communicate the benefits of a diverse and sustainable private sector in the Yukon by requesting the Government of Yukon to:
Develop landscape level fuel management plans for communities across the Territory.
Support the commercial value of the timber removed from the land by promoting its utilization in ways that will offset the consumption of imported fossil fuels or reduce GHG emissions.
Develop policies that create the conditions for entrepreneurial investment in this sector by continuing to support the wood products industry through the development of forest resource management plans and timber harvesting plans.
Evaluate incentive programs and create a program of meaningful rebates for commercial building owners who invest in renewable biomass heating systems or other means of reducing the investment risk.
Resolution adopted: 03/12/2018