Donald Danforth Plant Science Center Principal Investigator Ivan Baxter is leading a new $16 million multi-institutional project on understanding of water use efficiency in sorghum as a bioenergy crop. “To be economically viable and have environmental benefits, crops used for bioenergy production need to be grown where the supply of water is insufficient or too inconsistent to support production of …
Danforth Center to Lead Research on Sorghum for Bioenergy
The Danforth Plant Science Center with principal investigator Andrea Eveland will lead a multi-institutional project to study sorghum as a versatile bioenergy crop, and its response to drought. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Genome-Enabled Plant Biology program supports the three-year $2.7 million project for the Determination of Gene Function program. Sorghum is the fifth most widely grown cereal crop …
Rock House Advisors Announces Expansion
Rock House Advisors, the business consulting firm founded by former National Biodiesel Board CEO Joe Jobe, has announced the addition of Mike Marsch as Senior Vice President. Marsch will help lead an expanded national and international network of strategic partners who serve as Rock House Associates. This network of experts collaborates on projects to expand the scope of business services …
Breakthrough Energy Ventures Launches $1B Green Fund
A new green venture fund has been created by Breakthrough Energy Coalition (BEC) called Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV). The $1 billion investor-led fund will finance emerging energy technologies with the goal of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions to near-zero. The announcement was made earlier this month during the climate talks. “It is extremely exciting for us to launch this fund …
Finnish #Climate Report Phases out Coal, Ups #Biofuels
On November 30, 2016, the Finnish Government began discussing its approved National Energy and Climate Strategy that was released on November 24th. “National Energy and Climate Strategy to 2030,” outlines the country’s strategies and gives detailed actions that will be undertaken for the country to reach European Union (EU) climate objectives through 2030 as well as to help Finland to …
Research Develops Cold Tolerant #Bioenergy Grass
University of Illinois agronomist D.K. Lee has developed a bioenergy grass that is tolerant to freezing. Current bioenergy crops such as Miscanthus and switchgrass grown in the Midwest are prone to freezing. When Lee discovered one morning in Mid-April that the only grass not frozen was prairie cordgrass he and his team began to research what molecular changes keep cordgrass, …
WEO-2016 Finds Renewables, Natural Gas Future Winners
According to the 2016 World Energy Outlook (WEO-2016), the winners to reach energy demand growth through 2040 will be renewables and natural gas. The annual report is published by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and finds that the era of fossil fuels is long from over. Natural gas will continue to expand and coal and oil usage will decrease. This …
Biofuture Platform Announced During COP22
One of the first transportation-fuel related climate initiatives was announced during COP22 this week. The Biofuture Platform was launched in COP22 host country Marrakech by co-hosts Brazil and Morocco, and is a coalition formed to accelerate development and scale up deployment of modern sustainable low-carbon alternatives to fossil based solutions in transport fuels, industrial processes, chemicals, plastics and other sectors. …
Will Pursuing #Bioenergy Require Trade-offs?
Will pursuing bioenergy require trade-offs? This question served as the basis from research out of North Carolina State University (NC State) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) that finds that choosing how to meet bioenergy goals means making trade-offs about the impact on ecosystems and wildlife. The study primarily focused on the southeastern U.S. but the researchers believe the results …
Funds Available for #Biomass Powered Biorefineries
The USDA is helping biorefineries go even greener. The USDA Rural Business Cooperative Service, a division within the USDA, has allocated funds through the Repowering Assistance Program, to assist renewable fuel facilities convert away from fossil-fuel based heat and/or power to renewable biomass power. Applications are being accepted from July 25, 2016 until October 24, 2016 and only facilities in …