SANDPOINT — Creative, innovative and solution-oriented are the adjectives the Association of Idaho Cities uses to describe the achievements of award-winning towns. AIC recently recognized Sandpoint city officials with one of its annual City Achievement Awards for its innovative wastewater treatment co-generation project.

The award was for the Public Works category, one of seven which also included community engagement, economic and community development, parks and recreation, transportation, public works, and youth, according to information from AIC.

Sandpoint's winning public works project "transforms high strength food waste into heat and power to offset the wastewater treatment plant’s electric and natural gas bills," AIC said.

The city completed the project in 2012. Funded with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars via the Department of Energy, the equipment, designed to burn waste methane gas, provides energy to operate and heat the plant, saving the city tens of thousands in energy costs per year. In the effort to boost production of methane during the wastewater treatment process, the city began processing high-strength waste from such manufacturing facilities as Litehouse Foods and Laughing Dog Brewing, which helps fuel the energy savings while saving the firms disposal costs.

AIC, established in 1947, is celebrating its 69th year of prize awards for innovation in the state's 200 incorporated cities. In 2015, Sandpoint received an award in the Public Safety category for its joint powers agreement between the city and Sagle fire districts.