Waterloo, Ontario will Soon be Powered by Dog Poop

Waterloo is taking one big stinky step into the future with their new venture: turning dog waste into energy. The pilot program will be the first of its kind implemented in a Canadian city and in addition to creating energy from waste it will also curb the amount of litter produced by the city.

Dog owners walking their pets will pick up poop as usual but instead of putting it in the garbage, they put it into a special receptacle. The poop is then collected and stored in an underground container for 10-14 days, after which it’s sent to a processing plant and combined with other organic waste. The process is called anaerobic digestion, which creates a biogas that can be burned for heat and energy. The leftover waste can be used for fertilizer.

The project will be implemented over the next few weeks in three parks throughout the city including an off-leash dog park.

Read more about ‘poop power’ here.