The Sun Grant Initiative is working with the Department of Energy- Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office of Biomass Program to develop and implement a Regional Biomass Partnership to address barriers associated with the development of a sustainable and predictable supply of biomass feedstocks. 

The joint DOE/USDA Billion Ton Study (2.8 MB pdf) establishes the resource base and future potential for a large-scale biorefinery industry. As the industry expands from grain ethanol to include cellulosic ethanol, it is expected that agriculture crop residues and forest residues will be the first to develop for biorefinery purposes. Energy crops will develop and become integrated into the agricultural cropping systems as the biorefining industry matures and creates a demand for those resources. Each Sun Grant Region has held a biomass workshop to address each region’s unique capacity to contribute to the goal of producing a billion tons of biomass feedstock. Collaborations among the regional partnerships will become critical in developing sustainable biomass production and crop rotation strategies for both existing and new biomass resources.

The Feedstock Partnership has been charged by the DOE Office of Management and Budgets with three tasks; 1) biomass resource assessment, 2) biomass resource development, and 3) biomass resource education and outreach. The Feedstock Partnership is assembling national task teams to complete these OMB tasks.

Use the links in the left-hand bar to see more details about these efforts.