The U.S. Departments of Energy and Agriculture have awarded 10 grants totaling $12.2 million to spur research into improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of growing biofuel and bioenergy crops.
Overall, the USDA and DOE projects are designed to improve crops to be grown for biofuels – including selected trees and grasses – by increasing their yield, quality and ability to adapt to extreme environments.
Researchers will rely on modern genomics to develop breeding and other strategies to improve the crops. The research will be conducted on switchgrass, poplar, miscanthus and brachypodium, among other plants.
The potential benefits of the research range from decreasing oil imports to increasing options for American farmers. Because these crops will be optimized to tolerate conditions such as drought and poor soils, they can be grown on marginal lands unsuitable for food crops, thereby avoiding competition with food production.
Farmers will have the option to grow bioenergy crops in addition to other existing crop choices, the agencies say.
This is the sixth year of the joint USDA and DOE funding program. DOE’s Office of Science will provide $10.2 million in funding for eight projects, while USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture will award $2 million to fund two projects. Initial funding will support research projects for up to three years.
The 10 projects are located in California, Colorado, Illinois, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Virginia.
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