The Western Canada Black Liquor Recovery Boiler Advisory Committee (WCBLRBAC) is dedicated to the safe operation of Black Liquor Recovery Boilers.   The WCBLRBAC is made up of industry representatives who meet bi-annually to share their experience, learnings and developments.

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Spring Meeting May 4,5 2026
Thank you all for attending and for contributing to another successful Western Canada BLRBAC meeting and technical session. Your participation, your openness in sharing incidents and learnings, and your commitment to safe recovery boiler operation are what make this group so valuable to our industry.
I want to recognize the members who stepped forward during our elections. I am Excited to have accepted the role of Chairman, and with that would like to thank Mike Bates for his contributions through the many years on the committee, supporting myself moving into the role and the organization over the years he has been involved. Would like to recognize Mason Rowat, our new Treasurer. Thank you as well to our newly appointed Steering Committee members—Dan Laing, James Lethbridge, William Barkwell, Mike Bates, Jason Shaw, and Greg Imig—and to Jessica Brewster for taking on the Secretary position. Your willingness to serve ensures that this committee continues to strengthen safety, knowledge sharing, and operational excellence across all our mills.
This session highlighted just how important that work is. We reviewed incident questionnaires, including tube leaks, dissolving tank issues, ESP findings, and several critical learnings from Howe Sound and Harmac. The ESP Subcommittee reminded us again that many issues are still being caught during walkdowns rather than by detection systems—an important reminder of the value of vigilance and strong field presence.
We also heard significant updates from the Recovery Boiler Committee, including severe corrosion cases, spout thinning, and long-term fitness-for-service challenges. These discussions reinforce why experience, education, and consistent training matter—because the risks are real, and the consequences can be severe.
Our technical presentations this week were exceptional. We explored alternate fuel strategies, hydrogen-ready burner design, and the challenges of combustion stability. We learned about low-pressure sootblowing technology and its potential for energy savings and reduced maintenance. We heard valuable insights on ESP training, condition assessments, NDE practices, and the importance of year-over-year data to truly understand equipment health. And we dug into water chemistry, coordinated phosphate control, reduction efficiency optimization, cladding corrosion mechanisms, and the role of advanced analytics in improving boiler reliability.
Across all these presentations, one theme stood out: the power of shared knowledge. Whether it’s a corrosion case study, a burner upgrade, a smelt spout robot installation, or a hard earned lesson from an outage, every contribution helps another mill operate more safely and more efficiently.
Thank you to all presenters, vendors, and committee members for your time and expertise. And thank you to everyone here for your engagement, your questions, and your commitment to continuous improvement. This community is stronger because of your participation.
 

Angelo Porchetta

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