Expansion of Ridley Island facilities won’t have a negative impact on Port Edward

Concerns by Port Edward officials over the introduction of a wood pellet facility to Ridley Island were addressed by Terminal representatives last week, who stressed that the loading and storage facility would not have a negative impact on the town.

With a plan for up to five silos to be built, the plan is to export the wood pellets to overseas destinations mainly in the Asian marketplace. Bill Myers the human resources and loss control coordinator at Ridley Terminals Inc. addressed the issue with Port Ed Council who were concerned about dust from the product wafting over to their town.

Myers said that in windy or rainy conditions the silos would not run, which leaves many in the area scratching their heads, wondering exactly when the terminal would operate considering our rather unpredictable climate, which frequently features the rain and the wind. It might be a pretty small window of opportunity following that guideline for shipment.

The full story of the latest addition to the economic scene was detailed in the Thursday edition of the Daily News.


RIDLEY’S PELLET PROJECT EXCITES COUNCIL
By Patrick Witwicki
The Daily News
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Page one

Port Edward residents will not be negatively impacted by the new Ridley Island Pellet Ship Loading facility, said Bill Myers, human resources and loss control coordinator, Ridley Terminals Inc.

Myers attended Port Edward council Tuesday night, and outlined the five year plan that will enable Ridley Terminals to ship wood pellets overseas, after transporting the pellets in from a sawmill in Houston.

“Silos will be built for the next five years,” he said. “(Our hope is for) five at the end of the project.”

The plan is to build one silo at a time, to provide a conveyor belt that will connect grain cars, to dumpster, to ships to transport the pellets overseas, especially in the growing Asian market.

Once the silo’s are in place, Ridley Terminals will be able to handle up to six rail cars a day, and unload 500 metric tones per hour, said Myers.

Then, the pellets will be transferred via conveyor from the off-loading station to the top of the silo, before being transferred to the main tank that can hold 11,000 metric tonnes of pellets. From there, the pellets eventually get transferred to ships. Some 2,000 metric tones will be dispensed per hour, he said. It’s expected that each vessel will be able to bundle up to 9,000 tonnes.

The District of Port Edward was concerned about the impact from construction, and subsequently, dust from the actual wood pellets. But Myers said that the entire project is adhering to strict environmental guidelines, and shouldn’t impact the community.

“(The dust) will be screened twice at Houston, and once at Ridley,” he said.

In windy or rainy conditions, the silos won’t run. “We don’t want to get the pellets wet,” he said.

In regards to the construction, he said that the steel has just arrived.

“They’re putting in the forms for a 12 foot wall,” he said.

After the first silo is complete, the plan is to build four more. The Houston sawmill is taking advantage of the wood-beetle decimated wood, and providing overseas markets with an alternative method to burning fuel.

“What they’re starting to do (over in Asia) is experimenting with coal and pellets,” said Myers. “If you burn a biofuel, you get credits for that. There’s a huge market for this,”

The expansion at Ridley Terminals is also expected to help both Port Edward and Prince Rupert economically, said Myers.

“In the first year, we’ll be able to handle it ourselves,” he said. But as the business expands, we’ll be looking at hiring, (Currently,) we’re looking for trades people who have operating experience.”

Coun. Murray Kristoff summed up the positive feeling for the entire district by saying, “It’s nice to see something happening out at Ridley.”