Story Published: Aug 30, 2007 at 5:15 PM PST
The plant just received their first big shipment of corn from the Midwest and is going through trial runs with all of the machinery to make sure everything is up to speed.
Soon local growers will be reaping the benefits too.
Pacific Ethanol's plant in Boardman is the company's newest.
The local economy is about to see the impacts once the plant is fully functioning.
Already, thirty-five full time jobs have been created and they are high paying-technical jobs.
Farmers producing corn crops around here can't help but look forward to big cash rewards.
Plant Pathologist Philip Hamm said, "I have never seen so much optimism because of the high value of all crops right now. Growers are the most optimistic people to begin with and to see even more optimism, it's amazing."
Besides providing the supply to fuel refineries in Washington and Oregon, one of the valuable by-products of turning corn into alcohol is a wet distillers grain, which local farmers are using to feed their farm animals.
The production of ethanol turns fermented corn into alcohol.
It works in nearly the same way wine-makers use to turn grapes into wine.
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