WPAC webinar highlights opportunity for boiler standards modernization in Canada

On May 7, I had the honour of hosting the WPAC’s webinar highlighting how adopting the European Union standards for biomass boilers would enable Canada to rapidly transition to green energy and heat in industrial, commercial and residential applications.

I was joined by biomass heating expert Dr. Harry “Dutch” Dresser and Research Institute of Sweden Senior Engineer Henrik Persson. Dr. Dresser’s discussion examined how by removing barriers to EN 303-5 boiler imports Canada can adopt modern biomass heating; while Mr. Persson’s presentation provided great examples of how European standards are contributing to a thriving modern biomass heating sector while ensuring public safety.

More than 150 regulators, inspectors, manufacturers, distributers, installers and standards organizations attended the webinar to learn how European made and certified boilers are safe and efficient, and are supporting positive growth in bioenergy and the transition to a low-carbon economy across member states and beyond. Canada’s lack of recognition of European boiler standards represents an unwarranted trade barrier that negatively impacts Canada’s bioenergy sector and progress on our climate goals.

The case is clear: recognizing European biomass boiler standards and allowing for the import of safe, well-engineered and efficient European boilers, Canada will create a clear path to reducing our carbon footprint and easing energy poverty in the country while supporting the domestic forest sector. We have been pursuing this for three years with stakeholders and provincial and national regulators as well as standard-setting bodies – gauging by the participation at the webinar it’s also clear that others support our efforts.

WPAC and our member companies will continue to advocate for this important policy change and we appreciate stakeholder support of our continued efforts. If you were unable to join the session, you can access a recording below.

Dr. Fahimeh Yazdan Panah is the Director of Research and Technical Development at the Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC).

Watch the webinar

This article is part of the Bioheat Week 2023. Read more articles about bioheat in Canada.