By: Scott Thurlow
GREEN TECHNOLOGIES
Biofuels: fueling growth and innovation in canada
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n Canada, we are blessed with a rich bounty of natural resources. Most often, we associate this with the abundance of petroleum-based resources which make Canada a world leader in traditional energy and fuel supply. In addition to this however, Canada also has a wealth of biomass and cropland from which energy crops can sprout. And while our domestic biofuels industry has grown into a working success, the simple fact is that to meet our growing energy needs and stresses, we need to do more. As a country, simply recognizing our clean-energy potential is no longer sufficient. Today, in the face of ever-increasing energy demands and global climate challenges, the need for innovation has never been greater. This is true both in terms of how we make our fuels, as well as capitalizing on the potential of where these fuels can come from;
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be it our farmer’s fields or even our landfills. Domestic renewable fuel production strengthens our economy, protects the air we breathe, and plays a key role in securing and diversifying our energy future. It also speaks directly to the value of continued innovation in Canada, both on the science and technology frontier as well as in modernizing the market options for the products grown on Canadian farms. Already, the Canadian biofuels industry is creating a suite of innovative fuels. This includes traditional corn-based ethanol, biodiesel from canola, spent cooking oils and rendered animal residues. There are also advanced biofuels, notably feedstock agnostic cellulosic ethanol, which can include wood waste, forest biomass and reclaimed municipal solid waste. Right now, in addition to producing traditional biofuels, the industry is also at work improving efficiencies in the production of first-generation ethanol and biodiesel. This includes developing new processes and value-added co-products to advance Canada’s place in the emerging bio-economy. When looking at innovation in the energy sector, the renewable fuels sector truly is the place where some of the most exciting work in the world is currently being done. This innovation started with the first-generation technology for domestic production of ethanol and biodiesel. From there, the industry has evolved with the advent of new technologies that promise to extract even more energy potential with a broader range of crops, including the production of biopolymers, nutraceuticals and other advanced food-related sources, industrial plastics and advanced biofuels like cellulosic ethanol. Reflecting on the importance of these innovators, the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association (CRFA) created a new committee and classification of membership specifically for the next-generation of biofuel producers in Canada. The new committee and its members represent leaders in advanced
