PBS News Weekend 
Season 10, Episode 97 of 99
Chicago-area plant serves as a model for how the country can use wastewater for energy. Between flushing the toilet, bathing and washing dishes, the average person in the United States generates almost 100 gallons of wastewater each day. But while treating water, including wastewater, accounts for only 3 to 4 percent of all energy used in the country, one utility in the suburbs of Chicago is using the waste it extracts from raw sewage to generate all the energy it takes to power its entire plant. It's a model that could dramatically reduce the amount of energy used to treat the nation's wastewater. NewsHour Weekend's Christopher Booker reports.
