The City of Salem is pleased to announce the receipt of a second $1 million grant award from the Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) through the  Community Renewable Energy Grant Program.  This new grant award will be used to replace a hot water boiler system capable of producing a total of 6.2 million Btu/hr of heat, at the City’s Willow Lake Wastewater Pollution Control Facility. The boilers will work with the existing biogas Cogeneration Facility at Willow Lake to generate renewable heat energy from the byproducts of the wastewater treatment. Salem is one of 39 recipients to receive grant awards from ODOE for renewable energy and energy resilience projects.

The Willow Lake Wastewater Pollution Control Facility uses anaerobic digesters to aid in the treatment of wastewater from Salem area businesses and residents. Through the treatment process, the digesters produce methane biogas as a by-product. Salem’s Cogeneration Facility turns that biogas into renewable power and heat that’s put back to use at the Willow Lake Wastewater Treatment Facility and results in annual energy savings and significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from the wastewater treatment process. Salem’s Cogeneration Facility was made possible by the generous support of the Oregon Department of Energy, Energy Trust of Oregon, and customers participating in Portland General Electric’s Green Future Program through the Renewable Development Fund.

The current biogas boilers at Willow Lake were installed in 1977 and are at the end of their useful life. The project is estimated to cost a total of $3.1 million and is partially funded through Salem’s Capital Improvements Plan and funds generated through wastewater rates.

Learn more about the Willow Lake Wastewater Treatment Facility or see the daily power generation and carbon reduction statistics for the cogeneration facility at www.cityofsalem.net