By: Rubina Obaid
www.asianbiomass.com
There is a great demand for Canadian wood pellets all over the world because of their due diligence and implementing stringent environmental regulations. The well-established forest industry takes part in producing quality products such as lumber, structural panels, pulp, paper, tissue, and newsprints.
Wood pellet is a form of fuel that is obtained through wood shaving, chips, bark, and sawdust. They can easily be transported and have low moisture content, due to which it becomes a perfect source of energy production. Canadian pellet industry is not massive, however, it is a very important market for the Canadian forest industry. The Canadian wood pellet sector strives to produce the finest wood pellets and implementing superior practices to make better use of their forests. They have improved processes to decrease and harvest sawmill residues, while providing support in line with the government-led initiatives to rehabilitate damaged and dead trees. This process does not only help in protecting wildlife habitats but also contributes to carbon sequestration.
There is a great demand for Canadian wood pellets all over the world because of their due diligence and implementing stringent environmental regulations. The well-established forest industry takes part in producing quality products such as lumber, structural panels, pulp, paper, tissue, and newsprints. These pellets are usually obtained through harvested residues like treetops, branches, and low-quality logs that are left after the process of harvesting. Canadian forest industry knows precisely to maximize the value of every tree which has been harvested. This means they assess and predetermine the quality of the log and its use in the future. Lumber is a primary product, which on average uses 45 percent of each log. 30 to 35 percent of each log goes to pulp chips which are used as the raw material for the pulp mills. While, 20 to 25 percent of each log becomes sawdust and shaving which are used for making pellets, and only 5 to 10 percent of the log is the bark which is used for energy produced for drying lumber and biomass.
Wood pellet sector has emerged as a secondary harvester which means forest residues are used which are comprised of low-quality logs, branches, and treetops that are left behind by the primary harvesters. Harvesting residues are generally burnt to mitigate the risk of forest fire. Therefore, these residues, which include split or cracked logs, oversized branches, excessive sweep or crook, and small diameter logs, are used by the pellet industry as raw material. Canadian wood pellet sector carefully converts the waste into energy which further contributes to achieving a carbon-neutral environment.
Source:
https://www.canadianbiomassmagazine.ca/canadas-wood-pellets-a-responsible-source-of-clean-energy/
