For Immediate Release
April 27, 2007

MCGUINTY GOVERNMENT INVESTS IN GREEN TECHNOLOGY

Part Of The McGuinty Government’s Initiatives For A Greener, Healthier Ontario

Minister Jim Watson holds up a material generated from waste using the technology Plasco will demonstrate in its Ottawa plant. This material can be used to make concrete and asphalt.

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OTTAWA — The McGuinty Government is investing in an initiative to turn garbage into clean energy, Minister of Health Promotion Jim Watson announced today on behalf of Premier and Minister of Research and Innovation Dalton McGuinty.

"This demonstration plant is an important step towards creating a sustainable, prosperous Ontario," said Watson,  "Each day, it will divert 85 tonnes of garbage from landfill and turn that waste into clean electricity."

Ontario is investing $4 million in a demonstration plant operated by the Plasco Energy Group in Ottawa. It uses a sealed system to break down waste. The outputs of this process are a clean fuel, used to generate electricity, and a material that can be used to make concrete and asphalt. This demonstration plant will be used to test the technology for use at a larger scale.

"We believe the operation of this plant will demonstrate a new choice for processing municipal solid waste," said Plasco President Rod Bryden. "Less costly to the municipality, friendly to the environment, and a source of distributed, recovered energy in our cities."

Looking forward, Plasco predicts that the technology could be scaled up to process nearly all of Ottawa's solid waste, creating enough clean electricity to light nearly 25,000 homes. The technology could provide municipalities with a new solution to their solid waste challenges, generating clean electricity and turning Ottawa-based Plasco into a world leader in waste-to-energy solutions.

"We are on the side of Ontarians who want a growing economy and a clean environment," said Premier McGuinty. "This initiative promises to make Ontario a leader in clean waste-to-energy technologies, creating new markets and new jobs for Ontarians. It's a great example of why our government invests in innovation: to turn home-grown ideas into home-grown jobs."

All Ontarians have a role to play in making our province greener. The government has already taken action by protecting a greenbelt that stretches across southern Ontario from development, introducing tough new laws that protect our drinking water, producing more renewable energy and doing more to conserve electricity. But we know more needs to be done. That's why our next step will be the announcement of a climate change plan - a step that will help all Ontarians do their part to make our province cleaner and greener while keeping the economy strong.