Whitecourt, Alberta, Canada, 03 August 2011 -- The government of Alberta today announced CAD 17.5 million in funding for a company project aimed at generating clean energy from waste A special event was held today at Millar Western's pulp mill in Whitecourt. The grant, allocated from Alberta's ecoTrust program, will help fund the installation of innovative technology to convert organic material from pulp mill effluent into a biogas that will generate power and heat, displacing fossil fuels in mill processes.

The Bioenergy Effluent Project is expected to deliver significant environmental benefits, including lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduced water consumption, improvements in the quality of treated effluent discharges to receiving waters, and cuts in the production of solid organic waste. The project is now in the process of pursuing the necessary permits and, if approved, will take two years to complete.

Provincial funding for the project comes from Alberta’s share of the Canada ecoTrust for Clean Air and Climate Change.