Green Jobs Highlighted at Expo

by Ryan Howard (Fergus Falls Daily Journal) ...(F)rom North Dakota State University, Dr. F. Larry Leistritz, a professor of agribusiness and applied economics, and Nancy Hodur, a research scientist in the same department, created a presentation about how Minnesota and North Dakota can take advantage of coming advances in the bioeconomy.

...Hodur’s presentation focused primarily on the development of next generation biofuels. She cited the rapid rise in ethanol production over the last 10 years, but she noted that no resource can exponentially increase forever. “The bioeconomy is more than just corn-based ethanol,” she said. “Corn will eventually hit a wall.” When that happens, she said, enterprising individuals will be poised to profit as the search for alternative biofuels heats up.

...First of all, most crop producers are unaware that the alternative biofuel market exists, and some that are have reservations stemming back to what they think are injustices perpetrated on them by ethanol companies. Second, it’s unclear if the venture would be profitable to farmers, compared to other uses of the land. Third, there currently exists no widespread entity that can transfer the feedstock to the facilities that would turn it into fuel. “Whoever does this first is going to have a significant advantage down the road,” said Hodur. “It might not exist yet, but there’s a real opportunity for somebody there.”

Perhaps the most significant obstacle to widespread start-ups of alternative biofuel plants is investor skepticism in a tough economy. Hodur said this could be overcome if the private sector urges the government to intervene and “de-risk” the proceedings. READ MORE