Environmental Challenges and Opportunities in Biofuel Feedstock Production: U of M College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences

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Environmental Challenges and Opportunities in Biofuel Feedstock Production

Keynote Speaker - Wally Wilhelm (UNL - USDA)
Related Panel Member - Gyles Randall

The US has embarked on a challenging goal of replacing 30% of current motor fuel consumption with renewable fuel by 2030. The nation’s agriculture and forestry systems will be challenged to produce, in a sustainable manner, the billion tons of feedstock to achieve this goal.

Environmental sustainability implies that the additional production can be generated without impacting output of traditional products (food, feed, and fiber) or environmental quality while meeting the new demands. Removing crop biomass (stover or residue) as a soil input will reduce soil carbon content, the soil fraction responsible for many favorable soil properties, if other crop and soil management practices are not changed simultaneously.

An extensive effort will be needed to develop crops and advanced cropping systems that greatly expand biomass production and provide a sustainable supply of feedstock while continuing to provide traditional output and the carbon to sustain the soil ecosystem.