Aurora College and Delta Enterprises have been awarded a federal grant to develop an alternative energy project in Inuvik.
The organizers have received a total of $95,000 to study the development of converting waste cardboard into heating pellets for homes and businesses in both Inuvik and the Beaufort Delta.
A biomass boiler could reduce waste, create a clean, alternative fuel option for the Inuvik area, and create new jobs.
The money comes from the Northern Responsible Energy Approach for Community Health and Electricity grant through Crown Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.
“Micro-energy production alternatives show promise in reducing grid energy demands while providing novel economic energy production opportunities for small northern communities,” says Aurora College VP of Research Joel McAlister.
“We hope to continue development of the Inuvik Pellet Mill, expanding analyses to other waste stream opportunities for energy production and landfill reduction.”
Pellet boiler systems are becoming increasingly hot items as an alternative energy source in northern communities.
An existing building was retrofitted to house the Inuvik Pellet Mill, which became operational in late 2019.
Earlier feasibility studies for that project determined that up to 60 tonnes per year of Inuvik’s cardboard waste could be diverted from the landfill and converted into fuel pellets.
Inuvik received $1.6 million money back in September to replace some of the diesel boilers in municipal buildings with pellet boiler systems.
On February 9, Dan Vandal, Minister of Northern Affairs, and Michael McLeod, Member of Parliament for the Northwest Territories, virtually toured the Inuvik Pellet Mill and laid out plans for expansion of the project.
Plans include developing local recycling infrastructure that may lead to other types of recycling and waste to heat programs, testing different types of biomass fuel mixtures, utilizing waste cardboard from other Beaufort Delta communities, and expanding employment opportunities related to the pellet mill.
