Fink Machine marks annual Bioenergy Day with open house
November 1, 2017
By Fink Machine
Nov. 1, 2017 - Bioenergy is a domestic energy source responsible for sustaining tens of thousands of jobs, many of them in rural communities where they are most needed. One of those rural communities is Enderby, B.C., home to Canada’s leading supplier of biomass boilers Fink Machine.
In honor of the Fifth Annual Bioenergy Day on Oct. 18, Fink Machine held an open house to showcase their biomass-fuelled district energy system as well as the highlight the nearly 100 biomass heating projects they have done across Canada and the U.S. Fink Machine was one of 60 organizations across Canada and the U.S. that participated in events to recognize the economic and environmental benefits of using biomass to produce heat, power and fuels. Fink Machine, other private businesses, state governments and universities invited local residents and stakeholders to learn more about bioenergy and how it contributes locally to forest health and economic productivity.
Locally elected officials and staff from a number of B.C. communities, business people as well as members of the general public and media attended the open house. Most people were amazed at the extent of the DE system (10 buildings with approx. 1.5 km of piping) fueled with wood chips bought from a local sawmill.
Bioenergy is made from organic materials that are byproducts from other industries. Supplying biomass to the growing bioenergy sector represents an additional market for byproducts that support key sectors like forestry and agriculture. Bioenergy plays a key role in forest health by providing a market for dead fibers that are cleared from forests to reduce the likelihood of catastrophic fires. By valuing materials that might otherwise go to waste, bioenergy often contributes to the economic well-being of farmers, foresters and landowners.
The bioenergy sector is extremely diverse and spans residential scale heating through to commercial heating, district energy, combined heat and power, and industrial scale energy production. If direct energy production was not enough, bioenergy also includes the production of liquid (ethanol, biodiesel, etc.) and solid fuel (wood pellets, torrifaction, biochar, etc.) market.
“Firewood continues to be an essential energy and heating source in suburban and rural communities across North America,” said Jack Goldman, president & CEO of the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association. “HPBA members across Canada and the United States know the importance of bioenergy from wood heaters and their role in providing energy security and heating households.”
Bioenergy Day 2017 sponsors included Biomass Power Association, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office, Pellet Fuels Institute, U.S. Industrial Pellet Association, Hearth Patio and Barbecue Association, Biomass Thermal Energy Council and Biomass Magazine. To learn more, please visit www.bioenergyday.org.
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