Report reveals policy challenges facing BECCS industry in Canada
March 2026
BioEnergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) uniquely addresses multiple urgent Canadian priorities: permanent carbon removal, renewable energy generation, wildfire risk mitigation and forestry community revitalization, but policy challenges stand in the way of effective deployment.
The 2025 BECCS Leadership Summit brought together leaders from across the forestry industry, government, Indigenous organizations and businesses, finance and technology sectors to discuss the foundational elements needed to support a sustainable BECCS industry in Western Canada.
This new report distills what we heard at the Summit, including conversations focused on the promise of BECCS as a technology pathway that can simultaneously remove carbon from the atmosphere, generate renewable energy and support forestry sector resilience, while also highlighting the barriers preventing deployment at scale.
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Canada’s BECCS Paradox: World-class potential, real-world barriersBECCS Leadership Summit Proceedings Read the report (PDF) |
This report, written by Margi Pandya, a policy analyst with the Canada West Foundation, summarizes themes without attribution. It is intended to inform public policy discussions.
What is BECCS?
BECCS is a technology pathway that turns fuel like biomass, wood residuals (e.g., sawdust from sawmills), logging residues from forestry operations and black liquor from pulp mills into energy, while permanently removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Learn more.
Acknowledgements
We extend our sincere thanks to our partners, Natural Resources Canada, the Max Bell Foundation and Jim Gray along with the BECCS Leadership Summit founding partners TorchLight Bioresources, Emissions Reduction Alberta, Alberta Innovates and the Alberta Forest Products Association for their continued support.
Media contact
Melanie Ducharme
Director, Strategic Communications
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