Indiana prisons "go green" with biomass boilers

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Indiana's prison system is getting national attention for its efforts to go green.

Greenprisons.org held a national symposium on using sustainable energy for corrections at Indianapolis last week. The three-day event focused on cost-saving energy practices and training inmates to enter "green collar" jobs upon leaving prison.

The event included a tour of the Putnamville Correctional Facility in Greencastle, Ind. and its compost and recycling programs and its biomass boiler system that uses wood chips as fuel to heat the prison. The Department of Correction says prisons at Pendleton, Westville and Michigan City use similar systems.

The DOC also cited efforts at the Correctional Training Institute in New Castle, where exit lights have been replaced with LED lights that are projected to save $55,000 over a 12-year period.