Nebraska farm group leads biomass research

WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) -- Research done by the Imperial Young Farmers and Ranchers supports the recent Biotechnology Industry Organization report findings regarding sustainable production of agricultural biomass.

Using a grant received in 2004, the IYFR are conducting a series of research projects to find innovative methods for the removal, transportation and storage of corn stover.

"They are leading the way," said James Hettenhaus, co-founder of cea Inc.

The research takes into account the sustainability of overall agricultural in removing biomass like having enough biomass for grazing cattle and keeping nutrients in the soil. They also considered the of impact low or no-till farming on biomass removal and the role of conservation compliance provisions in the Farm Bill, said Bob McGrath, executive committee member of the IYFR's Biomass Committee.

One of the project goals is to validate wet storage biomass. A 600 ton pile stored in October 2005 has fared well, McGrath said.

Economic transportation, business models, soil testing, crop rotations and irrigation testing are all being done to determine the most sustainable methods of biomass production.

USDA and DOE review last year deemed the research to be useful to the bio-refinery industry. Iogen, Oxbow, BNSF Railroad, Perdue University are some of the IYFR partners.

Working with Oxbow, the IYFR are developing a one-pass harvester prototype for 2007 or 2008 that would separate the corn kernels from the rest of the crop.

"For corn stover, the holy grail is a one-pass harvester," McGrath said.