Industrial Waste

Canada-wide Standards for Dioxins and Furans: B.C. Pulp and Paper Boilers Burning Salt-laden Wood — Implementation Plan

Dioxins and Furans

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), commonly known as dioxins and furans, are toxic, persistent, bioaccumulative, and result predominantly from human activity. Due to their extraordinary environmental persistence and capacity to accumulate in biological tissues, dioxins and furans are slated for virtual elimination under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), the federal Toxic Substances Management Policy (TSMP) and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) Policy for the Management of Toxic Substances.

Nature and Application

The Canada-Wide Standard for pulp and paper boilers burning salt-laden wood sets out numeric targets and timeframes for reducing dioxin and furan emissions from new and existing boilers burning more than 10,000 oven-dried metric tonnes per year of hogged fuel generated from wood transported or stored in salt water.

Hogged fuel is a sawmill by-product and includes bark and similar wood wastes. It is burned by pulp and paper mills to create steam. When wood is transported in booms in marine waters it absorbs salt, which contains chlorine. When chlorine is burned in the presence of organic material like wood, under certain conditions of temperature and low oxygen levels, dioxins and furans can be created. At present there are eight coastal mills in British Columbia that meet the criteria with existing boilers under this standard.

Within Canada, British Columbia has the vast majority of existing coastal pulp and paper boilers that burn salt-laden wood. New Brunswick has one facility to which the Canada-Wide Standard applies. Other jurisdictions will apply the standard for new facilities in conjunction with their permitting processes if proposals for such new facilities are received in the future.

Numeric Target and Timeframe for Achieving Target

The dioxin and furan standard for all existing pulp mill boiler emissions will be less than 500 pico-grams per cubic metre (toxic equivalency) by 2006. The standard for new pulp mill boilers constructed after May 1, 2001 will be less than 100 pico-grams per cubic metre (toxic equivalency).

The standard for existing boilers was reviewed in 2003, and remains unchanged.

Progress Towards Implementation

The process to develop a British Columbia pollution prevention strategy to eliminate the formation of dioxins and furans by the coastal pulp and paper industry was launched in November 2001. The province engaged representatives from relevant stakeholder groups to help develop the strategy.

Facility operators are collaborating on a research and testing program to better understand the formation of dioxins and furans, and to identify and evaluate possible measures or approaches that will reduce, minimize or avoid the creation of dioxins and furans. This research and testing program is being undertaken by the Pulp and Paper Research Institute of Canada (Paprican), with financial support totalling $400,000 from all facility operators covered by this standard and Natural Resources Canada.

In 2000 there were 32 stack tests conducted and, in 2001, 37 tests were done. For 2002, five stack tests have been completed through to March 31. Paprican submitted a final report in 2003.