Leona Aglukkaq, minister for CanNor, announced $425,000 in funding for alternative energy projects by the Yukon Energy Corporation on Monday in Whitehorse.

The Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and the publicly-owned electrical utility will each contribute $225,000 to carry out a feasibility study and develop a business plan related to waste recovery technology that would convert municipal garbage into electrical energy.

CanNor also contributed $200,000 towards an Energy Charrette and Research Project. Part of the funding went to a meeting in March of energy experts and 75 Yukoners from various levels of government, industry, and the community to talk about energy options for Yukon.

David Morrison, YEC president, said the corporation will specifically look at turning municipal waste into energy, while also exploring geothermal, wind, hydro and solar energy.

"We have a list of projects that we've been looking at, or we'd like to look at and have considered as options for supplying the increase in the load that we see over the next five and 10 and 15 years,” he said. “We're trying to look at clean technologies and green technologies because that's what we're hearing from the public."

Morrison said the corporation will hold a series of community meetings in Mayo, Haines Junction and Dawson City in the coming months, as well as a meeting in Whitehorse Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at the Old Fire Hall.