It was too good to be true.
Plasco, the local company that promised to turn garbage into energy, has filed for creditor protection as it hangs on to hope that new investors can help save the company.
But the city of Ottawa is cutting ties. A report from the Environmental committee recommends the city officially end it's relationship with Plasco.
"The idea of the technology was almost a fantasy to people in municipal government," says city councillor and vice-chair of the committee Rick Chiarelli.
"The trouble it was running into, it became really clear that we have to make a decision really quickly to put this behind us."
According to the filing, Plasco doesn't have enough money to sustain their current operations or even pay their February rent.
The announcement also means the termination of 80 jobs from the waste to energy company.
About 25 employees remain on the job through the creditor protection process.
"We wanted Plasco to succeed because if it did, it would've been world class technology developed and improved right here in Ottawa," says Ottawa mayor Jim Watson.
The company missed three financial deadlines to raise at least $200 million to build a full scale commercial plant on Moodie Drive near the Trail Road landfill in Nepean. Plasco's commercial plant was linked to a 20-year deal with the City of Ottawa.
"We can't continue to dig a hole and create landfills," adds Watson. "It's not environmentally sustainable and we'll use the next couple of years to come up with a new plan."
Part of that plan is already underway. The city put out a request for information for alternatives to the mounting waste problem. It received 37 responses from not only Canada and the U.S., but Korea, Japan, Spain and Germany.
Chiarelli wouldn't comment on any of the proposals. Even though the city landfill site can be used for another 30 years, both Chiarelli and Watson say they need to develop a new plan soon.
