Prince George, B.C. - There is a huge potential for bio mass energy production in the Prince George region.

That is the bottom line from Janice Larson, Director  of Bioenergy and Renewable Resources with the BC Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources.

Larson recently delivered an overview of the provincial bioenergy strategy to a group at UNBC.

With a target of reducing greenhouse gases by at least 33% below the current levels by 2020 and 80% by 2050,  all options for  producing clean energy  are being explored.  That is especially important as the province is committed to being self sufficient in the production of electricity by 2016.

Larson says the  pending changes to legislation that will allow smaller  companies improved access to fibre, will open the door for more companies to get involved in using  bioenergy to  create power.  “It isn’t just burning biomass “says Larson “Nexterra and Tolko are using  residue from wood, and their gasification  of that  residue is offsetting the natural gas systems  used for kiln drying.  We have some leadership  in this area.”

She also points to the possibilities of using agricultural waste in the Peace and Fraser Valley, and fish waste and kelp for coastal communities, and of course, every community has to deal with  municipal waste “Every  community has a source of bio-mass they can consider using  for energy projects.”.

While the push seems to be on now in an effort to capture any value at all from mountain pine beetle killed wood, Larson says when that source is gone, there will still be fibre “ The forest will regenerate.  We could see dedicated energy crop production.”  Larson adds that there are more than just pine trees in B.C.  and some other species may  regenerate faster.

No matter  how the  power is generated,  Larson says  the consumer will pay a higher price for that power  “Our  existing  power producing facilities have long since paid  for the initial capital investment, now the construction of new facilities will cost more than  they  did in the past, and that means the cost  for the power will have to be higher.”  She says the BC Utilities Commission has  been asked that when setting rates, to take into account  the new  power sources will be “firm “ power  (always available)  can be established wherever  you want  it to  be (unlike hydro-electric) and that  it costs more to produce these new sources of power.

As for emissions,  Larson  says there is  new, expensive,technology that  can  be used "I think the emission technology is advancing.  There are electro static precipitators capturing significant amounts of particulates."    That may be the kind of technology  under consideration for the  Prince George Energy System.