Senator Warner was back out on the road Friday, with stops in Hopewell, Petersburg, and Richmond.

He started the day in Hopewell, where he visited the Regional Wastewater Treatment facility to tour the city's project to convert algae into biofuel and potentially reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

Hopewell received a $650,000 stimulus grant last year for the nine-month algae demonstration project to remove excess nitrogen from wastewater. The goal is to see if the conversion of algae, which feeds off of the nitrogen in the wastewater, into biofuel is a sustainable and viable source of energy.

If the project is successful, Hopewell could become a leader in "green" energy production.  As Senator Warner told the Petersburg Progress-Index:

"In the beginning of the 20th Century, Hopewell was the industrial capital of Virginia," Warner said yesterday during a visit at the Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant. "Today, in the 21st Century, Hopewell could become our capital for clean energy," he said.

Senator Warner said Hopewell's project could serve a "dual-purpose": "decrease the nitrogen in the [Chesapeake] Bay and create a by-product for fuel production."  

He said the project was an example of the type of innovative energy solution we need as part of a "portfolio approach" toward energy production here in the United States.  

Richmond's WTVR/Ch. 6 was at the wastewater treatment facility and broadcast this report:

Senator Warner later traveled to Petersburg, where he met with nearly 50 community and business leaders to provide them an update from Washington and answer their questions.

Later in the afternoon, he traveled to Richmond, and participated in an employee town hall meeting at Genworth Financial.  Later, he stopped by the studios of WWBT/Ch. 12 for a live interview during their 4 p.m. broadcast.  He discussed his efforts in Congress to find bipartisan consensus on financial reform, deficit reduction, and the economy:

Check out some more pictures from the day's trip below:

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