The Dryden Development Corporation (DDC) said there are “unpredecented opportunities” to grow biomass crops to create a sustainable market for local agriculture.
The DDC recently commissioned a Fallow Lands Feedstock Study that identified more than 45,000 hectares of marginal farmland in the Dryden area that would be suitable for biomass crop production. Crops such as miscanthus, switchgrass, reed canary grass and wood biomass are among the possibilities.
In a news release, the DDC said Ontario agriculture has more excess production capacity than just to grow food crops. High yielding whole plant perennial bio-energy crops pose a “promising opportunity” to develop a biomass market.
Possible markets for these crops still have to be explored.
The next steps are investigating potential yields, identifying interested farmers for a biomass feedstock cooperative, finding grow sites and looking into what pelletizing equipment is out there.
Results of the study can be found here.
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