Alaska is finally producing biodiesel.

This article from Biodiesel Magazine says the Alaska Green Waste Solutions plant (which uses equipment and know-how from its sister company, Pacific Biodiesel Technologies) is the state’s first commercial biodiesel plant and can turn used cooking oil into 1,000 gallons of the green a day:

“This is a great example of the community-based model we believe in,” said Bob King, President of Pacific Biodiesel. “Here we have a city that has very limited options for feedstock because of the harsh growing conditions, yet they can still be producing their own sustainable fuel. Use the resources in your area and it can happen.”

Constructed in Salem, Ore., by Pacific Biodiesel Technologies and JVNW, the plant was disassembled for shipment and reassembled in Anchorage. Built in six shipping containers, the facility includes storage for feedstock, biodiesel and glycerin, utilities and the biodiesel produces system. It can be shipped anywhere, assembled on site and ready for production quickly.

Alaska Waste officials are pretty pleased at the development of the Anchorage plant:

“Today is very exciting for us because this program has been in the development for several years. We were the first refuse company to introduce curbside recycling, the first to offer commercial customers pre-consumer food waste composting and now we are diverting more than 200,000 gallons of used cooking oil from the waste stream and using it to fuel our fleet,” said Jeff Riley, Chief Operating Officer for the company.