New direction for biomass group: advocacy group promotes strategy.

• Author: Ross, Ian
• Position: GREEN REPORT - Biomass Innovation Centre

A North Bay-based biomass advocacy group has resurfaced with a new name and renewed vigour to continue to take Northern Ontario's forestry sector in a new strategic direction.

The former staff of the Biomass Innovation Centre (BIC), once based at Nipissing University, has reconstituted and rebranded themselves as the Biomass North Development Centre, an industry group focussed on building the bioeconomy in this region.

"We can't drop the ball for Northern Ontario," said executive director Dawn Lambe. "It's one of those paths that will bring us into the future."

BIC met its abrupt end last spring when the university shelved the program as part of a restructuring effort.

Based out of a portable building on campus and funded externally, BIC's focus was on promoting awareness of the North's untapped biomass economy through conferences, workshops, and information exchange with Northerners.

But the existence of BIC never translated into any university programming.

"I don't think Nipissing understood the value proposition that we represented," said Lambe. "It was understated but we couldn't translate it into bums in seats." Undaunted, Lambe and her crew quickly reformed and recently incorporated themselves as a not-for-profit industry association providing consulting services, leading international trade missions, and providing market intelligence and research capacity for small and medium-sized businesses.

"It was a harsh ending and left us scrambling not to drop the ball on the initiatives we were working on," said Lambe. "We didn't want those opportunities to go fallow so we just ran with them." Biomass North is looking to bolster its ranks.

Lambe expects to have two major engineering firms and some well-known wood products companies in the fold shortly, but most of their members will be small businesses.

The group has a raft of events and projects planned for this year and beyond, including an appearance at Sudbury's Naturallia event in November and an upcoming...