Canada invests $525,000 into Indigenous biomass projects

Canada’s minister of Natural Resources, Amarjeet Sohi, announced a $589,629 (€518,599) investment in three Indigenous projects in British Columbia to create jobs and boost local economies. The release was published on news outlet Cision.

Two of these investments will be utilised to research the possibility of using biomass to heat and power local Indigenous communities.

$475,000 will be distributed to Indigenous environmental consulting company Chu Cho Environmental to assess the feasibility of using biomass to generate heat and power. According to the release this will be the first project of its kind to heat and power an Indigenous community in the region once completed.

$50,000 will be used by First Nations development firm Tzah Tez Tlee Development Corporation to help launch a feasibility study on a biomass heating system using excess wood residues to reduce the community’s reliance on diesel.

“These projects bring together the training and innovation necessary for communities to capture future opportunities presented by our forest sector,” said Sohi.

“They are great examples of how we are working with Indigenous partners to create good jobs and to provide eco-friendly development solutions that will directly benefit the surrounding communities.”