Through the exploration and development of the Peace Country's world-class LIMESTONE resources, RENEW COMMODITIES LTD. is contributing to a greener and stronger Western Canada.

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Renew Commodities Ltd. owns the WINDFALL LIMESTONE prospect. The Windfall Limestone prospect is a permitted high-grade limestone quarry between Tumbler Ridge and Chetwynd, B.C. 

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Located in the Bullmoose Valley, the prospect is close to road, rail, gas and electrical infrastructure, and is well-situated for low-cost bulk quarrying. 

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The WINDFALL LIMESTONE prospect secures a large surface exposure of Mississippian-aged “Rundle” limestone. The famous Rundle formation forms prominent mountain peaks across the Front Range of the Canadian Rockies, where its geotechnical and geochemical strength has allowed it to defy erosion and form impressive peaks and ridges. 

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This stratigraphic formation has long been recognized as a high-quality limestone resource. It has long served as an economically important feedstock for concrete, building materials, and chemical lime purposes. In the Peace District, it is well-situated to serve as a source of agrological lime for prairie farmers. We are working to develop our prospect to provide farmers with a source of affordable limestone. 

 

Why Ag Lime?

 

Limestone as a soil amendment increases crop yields by reducing soil acidity through the introduction of calcium carbonate into fields. 

 

Most vegetables, fruits, grains, and plants require a pH between 6 and 7 to grow healthy and thrive. However, over time the application of fertilizer, manure and the use of tilling can all increase soil acidity, decreasing the pH value, and causing diminishing yields. 

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Much like adding baking soda to cola sterilizes the fizziness of the soft drink, limestone interacts with acidic minerals in the soil to neutralize soil acidity and increase the pH level towards the optimum near-neutral range.  Adding limestone can help plants and crops flourish, especially in the naturally acidic soils of the Peace Country. These soil management methods were often referred to in older times as sweetening the soil, and the benefits of limestone have been recognized for decades. 

 

Decreasing the acidity of soil greatly increases the ability of crops to absorb nutrients, and soil neutralization can make soil less hospitable for pestilence like clubroot. 

 

The Peace Country of northeast B.C. and northwest Alberta is a uniquely challenging agricultural district, as its location at the boundary between the Plains and the muskeg and northern boreal forests contribute to a naturally high soil acidity. This has been compounded by intensive agricultural methods, which have introduced acidifying fertilizer and manure to the soil in industrial quantities. 

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Good soil management practices needed to overcome these growing challenges include crop rotation, zero till and applying lime to neutralize the soil. These methods have all been proven to deliver significant increases in yield and productivity.  Limestone application in particular pulls more CO2 into the soil and accelerates and promotes the uptake of nutrients and the effectiveness of fertilizers. 

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Here at Renew Commodities Ltd. we think this is a big deal. Recognizing that lime is an underused resource, we are working to solve the supply, logistical and agrology challenges that have hindered its use. 

The agrological benefits of soil enhancement via limestone application are generational - an application of lime can offset years of fertilizer and manure application, ensuring agriculture in the Prairies is sustainable for the next 100 years.

 

At the same time, these agrological benefits extend beyond the farmer and the consumer. Greater application of calcium carbonate into soils (via liming) can trap and store atmospheric carbon, in turn promoting plant growth, in a virtuous cycle of enhanced farm yields and cleaner air.

 

The solutions for sustainably feeding a hungry world are here in the northern Rockies, and we are excited to be part of the moment.