FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 15, 2009
CONTACT: Bob Decheine (Rothman): 202-225-5061
Zach Goldberg (Holt): 202-225-5801
Menendez Press Office: 202-224-4744
Lautenberg Press Office: 202-224-3224
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez and U.S. Representatives Rush Holt (NJ-12) and Steve Rothman (NJ-9) today announced that they secured $1 million for the continued construction of the Trenton Fuel Works biofuel manufacturing plant. The New Jersey members requested the funding earlier this year and it was included in the Fiscal Year 2010 Energy and Water Funding Bill, which the House passed earlier this month and the Senate passed today. Trenton Fuel Works is the first U.S. commercialization of manufacturing technology that thermochemically converts organic waste into a renewable, non-petroleum fuel that will serve as an alternative to gasoline. Last year, they secured $475,000 for the project. The President soon is expected to sign the bill into law.
“We should always be looking to support innovative approaches that help us achieve energy sustainability,” Holt said. “Our community will benefit from this new biofuel plant, and this funding will help ensure the quick completion of its construction.”
Senator Menendez said: "Biofuels are the type of energy sources worth pursuing for our economy and our environment. The development of biofuels can create jobs, lower energy costs and help clean the air we breathe. That helps our economy recover and lay the foundation for long-term economic security."
“Converting this facility into a manufacturing center for homegrown energy will help reduce America’s dependence on dirty energy sources and protect the environment,” stated Lautenberg, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “Projects like the Trenton Fuel Works biofuel manufacturing plant will help New Jersey remain a leader in technological innovation and allow us to guide America to a clean energy future. This project is a demonstration of American ingenuity and I am pleased we secured funding for it.”
“I’m extremely proud to support this kind of cutting-edge energy research,” said Rothman, a member of the House Committee on Appropriations. “With our strong scientific, academic and industrial infrastructure, New Jersey is poised to become a national leader in locally-generated energy that will create jobs and reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign oil. The Trenton Fuel Works is an integral part of that effort, and I am thrilled to continue to help provide them with federal funding as I have for the past several years.”
