SEDRO-WOOLLEY, Wash. -- Bill Gates recently toured a new facility in the Sedro-Woolley area that burns human waste and produces potable water and electricity.
The machine that produced that water is called the Janicki Omniprocessor.
The Gates Foundation is backing the project as part of its effort to improve sanitation in poor countries.
Gates says modern sewage plants do not incinerate waste, but rather turn the waste into solids that are stored in the desert. Other burn the waste using diesel or other fuels which is not practical for use in most poor countries.