(Solutions from the Land) ... Agricultural and timber lands provide more than just food and other fundamental products. With management, they
Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)
Back TO HOMEUSDA to Invest $8 Million to Expand Monitoring of Soil Carbon DEADLINE November 28, 2022
(U.S. Department of Agriculture) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) plans to invest $8 million to support and expand monitoring of
October 04, 2022 Read Full Article
No Ethanol Doesn’t Mean No Profit
By Alan Guebert (Farm and Dairy) ... And it featured several “cropaganda” moments, a clever invention of the podcast’s three co-hosts
September 16, 2022 Read Full Article
Setting the Record Straight on the Environmental Outcomes of the Renewable Fuel Standard
by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association) A new report published today (February 14, 2022) in the Proceedings of the National Academy
February 15, 2022 Read Full Article
Lawmakers Take Early Look at Climate-Critical Farm Bill Conservation Programs
(Solutions from the Land) Members of the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry held a hearing with key USDA officials
February 03, 2022 Read Full Article
With Assistance, Agriculture Can Help with Climate Change
by Collin Peterson (Minneapolis Star Tribune/Governors' Biofuels Coalition) ... According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), agriculture accounts for just
July 07, 2021 Read Full Article
House Ag Panel Hearing Boosts Role of Agriculture in Addressing Climate Change
(Solutions from the Land) The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry held its first hearing of the 117th Congress this
May 14, 2021 Read Full Article
Looking ahead to Second-Generation Biofuels
by Janet Kubat Willette (Farm Progress) Madhu Khanna, distinguished professor of environmental economics at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, says that
March 11, 2021 Read Full Article
Researchers Challenge the CRP Status Quo to Mitigate Fossil Fuels
(University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment/Phys.Org) ... (A)llocating CRP land for high-yielding energy biomass might
February 26, 2021 Read Full Article
Can This Unlikely Duo Revive Rural America and Help the Planet? Joe Biden and Tom Vilsack Plan to Take Swift Action on Climate Change Proposals.
by Art Cullen (Storm Lake Times/New York Times) ... Few took carbon sequestration seriously during his previous tenure, a time
January 28, 2021 Read Full Article
Ag Leaders Meet with Biden Team to Explain Priorities
by Ben Nuelle (AgriPulse) ... Carbon sequestration payments to farmers is something said to be on the table for the
December 07, 2020 Read Full Article
Senators Press USDA for Biofuel Infrastructure Grant Flexibility
(Kansas Ag Connection/US AgNet) U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) are pressing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
July 17, 2020 Read Full Article
The Race for Nature: How Congress Can Help Farmers and Ranchers Save Their Lands and Survive the Coronavirus-Induced Economic Crisis
(Center for American Progress) ... Urban sprawl, oil and gas extraction, and other industrial uses consumed more than 45,000 square
June 24, 2020 Read Full Article
Congresswoman Pingree Introduces the Agriculture Resilience Act to Promote Farmer-Driven Climate Solutions Legislation Sets Goal of Reaching Net-Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions in U.S. Agriculture by 2040
(Office of Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine)) Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today introduced the Agriculture Resilience Act (ARA), comprehensive legislation that sets
March 04, 2020 Read Full Article
These Candidates See Farming as a Climate Solution. Here’s What They're Proposing.
by Georgina Gustin (Inside Climate Change) ... Sen. Michael Bennet, like Biden, writes about voluntary markets to support better soil carbon practices. South
July 19, 2019 Read Full Article
US Fuel Mandates No Salve for Farm Trade Losses
(Argus Media) Higher US biofuel blending mandates cannot make up for lost export trade opportunities, according to farm groups caught in
May 21, 2019 Read Full Article
Rural America Is Ready for Some Sort of a New Deal, Preferably Green
by Art Cullen (The Guardian) Here in farming country we have the opportunity to rethink our approach to renewable energy and
March 15, 2019 Read Full Article
Integrated Bioenergy Crops: The Digest’s 2019 Multi-Slide ABLC Guide to EFC Systems
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) EFC Systems recently bought AgSolver which helps farmers maximize profit on every acre via tools that
January 15, 2019 Read Full Article
The Laws of Biofuels Deployment, and TACs that Whack: Heard on the Floor at the CAAFI Annual Meeting
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... This year, the TAC (Technical Advisory Committee of the Biomass R&D Board) did something about
December 05, 2018 Read Full Article
Environmental Groups File Petition with EPA Accusing It of Illegally Allowing Wildlife Habitat Conversion for Biofuels
by Meghan Sapp (Biofuels Digest) In Washington, following on the heels of an Environmental Protection Agency report to Congress documenting wide-spread habitat
November 01, 2018 Read Full Article
Farm Bill Delays, Ethanol Waivers Worry SD Sen. Rounds
by Barry Amundson (Grand Forks Herald) U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D, is concerned about two major issues that can affect farmers and
April 23, 2018 Read Full Article
Study Says CRP Mixes Don't Live up to Biofuel Potential
by Julie Harker (Brownfield Ag News) Mixed prairie grasses that are used in Conservation Reserve Program lands did not live up
February 21, 2018 Read Full Article
Biofuels Feedstock Study Supports Billion-Ton Estimate
(South Dakota State University/Biomass Magazine) Can farmers produce at least 1 billion tons of biomass per year that can be used
February 11, 2018 Read Full Article
New Study Shows Producers Where and How to Grow Cellulosic Biofuel Crops
(University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences/Science Daily) A new report provides practical agronomic data for five cellulosic
January 17, 2018 Read Full Article
Pheasants Choose Farms over Grasslands, Surprising MN Researchers
by Dave Orrick (Twin Cities Pioneer Press) Female pheasants have surprised researchers by running into corn and soybean fields —
November 07, 2016 Read Full Article
The Renewable Fuel Standard: Working as Intended?
(Environmental and Energy Study Institute) ... With a potential omnibus spending package on the table this fall, the oil industry and
August 12, 2016 Read Full Article
In Pitting Biofuels against the Environment, Only Clear Winner Is Oil
by Jessie Stolark (The Hill/Environmental and Energy Study Institute) ... The total amount of U.S. land under production by American farmers is
August 11, 2016 Read Full Article
Bloomberg Gets Duped by Anti-RFS Crowd
by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association) Here we go again. We didn’t think it could get much worse than the
August 01, 2016 Read Full Article
LETTER: Ethanol Is Truly a Homegrown Energy
by Kim Larson (Grand Forks Herald) ... Let us all be reminded, that CRP was never meant to remain as a
March 14, 2016 Read Full Article
OUR VIEW: Ethanol Supports May Have Outlived Usefulness
by Tom Dennis (Grand Forks Herald) ... What happened is that crude oil production soared in North Dakota and elsewhere
February 29, 2016 Read Full Article
Researchers Examine Alternative Switchgrass Breeding Methods to Increase Biofuel Production
(AZO CleanTech) Using switchgrass to produce biofuel is one way to decrease the United States’ dependence on oil, but growing
June 22, 2015 Read Full Article
USDA Publishes Final BCAP Rule
by Anna Simet (Biomass Magazine) The USDA has released the final rule for the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, and though
March 03, 2015 Read Full Article
USDA Provides $328 Million to Conserve Wetlands and Farmland, Boost Economy
(US Department of Agriculture) Farm Bill program will benefit wildlife and outdoor recreation activity in California Bay Delta Region, Mississippi,
September 08, 2014 Read Full Article
Vilsack Says Voluntary Conservation Programs Are Working
by Ken Anderson (Brownfield Ag News) There’s been considerable debate as to whether farming conservation practices should remain voluntary or
August 07, 2014 Read Full Article
Veteran Farmer Says EPA RFS Proposal Will Likely Undermine Conservation Efforts
by Kevin Jeffries (25 x '25) ... Lower demand for renewable fuels means lower prices for corn, soybeans and other crops.
April 04, 2014 Read Full Article
In Response: Ethanol Rule Helps the Environment
by Ashwin Raman (Duluth News Tribune) I disagreed with the Feb. 18 commentary, “Ethanol mandate hurts environment,” by Annette Meeks of
March 11, 2014 Read Full Article
The First Decade: Team Reports on US Trials of Bioenergy Grasses
(E! Science News/Earth & Climate) The first long-term U.S. field trials of Miscanthus x giganteus, a towering perennial grass used in
December 06, 2013 Read Full Article
AP Investigation: Obama's Green Energy Drive Comes with an Unadvertised Environmental Cost
By Dina Cappiello (Associated Press/StarTribune) The hills of southern Iowa bear the scars of America's push for green energy: The
November 12, 2013 Read Full Article
Tides of Prosperity, Past and Present
by Chris Hanson (Ethanol Producer Magazine) ... Similar to the 1970s period of prosperity, Zulauf (Carl Zulauf, economics professor at Ohio
September 25, 2013 Read Full Article
Save $270M! (and Make Biofuels Feedstocks, er, Feasible, er, Now)
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Is there bio-based relief for the harried taxpayer in sight? Could conservationists, growers and biofuels
May 07, 2013 Read Full Article
Infrastructure, Energy and Natural Resources: Senate Finance Committee Staff Tax Reform Options for Discussion
(US Senate Finance Committee) This document is the fourth in a series of papers compiling tax reform options that Finance Committee
April 26, 2013 Read Full Article
High Crop Prices Are Driving Land Use Change in the U.S. at an Increasing Environmental Cost
by Ned Stowe (Environmental and Energy Study Institute) The USDA estimates that farmers in the U.S. will plant nine million more
January 25, 2013 Read Full Article
Knocking $40 Per Ton out of Biomass Costs, the Green Way
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...In Maryland, The Wildlife Society released a Technical Review, “Effects of Bioenergy Production on Wildlife
January 24, 2013 Read Full Article
Native Plants Fuel Ethanol Plant
(Yahoo! News) Applied Ecological Services, The Earth Partners, LP, and POET team up to apply science to industry: Cross-sector demonstration showcases the potential
September 05, 2012 Read Full Article
Fifth Stop: Sustainability
by Margaret Broeren (Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center) ...Much more than a buzzword, “sustainable” means that trade-offs—social, environmental and economic factors—have
April 30, 2012 Read Full Article
USDA Offers Farmers More Money to Idle Sensitive Land
by Tom Polansek (Reuters) U.S. officials said on Friday they would offer higher payments to certain owners of environmentally sensitive
March 07, 2012 Read Full Article
Farmers to Plant Most Acres Since 1984, Prompted by Higher Crop Prices
by Jeff Wilson and Whitney McFerron (The Washington Post) ...Global food costs are down 11 percent from a peak a year
February 14, 2012 Read Full Article
2012 Farm Bill Biomass/Biofuel Recommendations
by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA) Retain Agricultural Land: Agricultural and forest lands are vulnerable to loss due to
January 24, 2012 Read Full Article
Congress ‘Lost faith’ in Advanced Bioenergy, Key Lawmaker Says
by Philip Brasher (Des Moines Register) Programs the Obama administration has been pushing to promote next-generation biofuels are likely to
December 07, 2011 Read Full Article
Cellulosic Biofuel Could Revive Farmlands Conservation Program
by Tiffany Stecker (ClimateWire/Scientific American) A study looks into giving farmers permission to harvest cellulosic feedstocks on land set aside for wetlands
August 11, 2011 Read Full Article
A Billion Tons of Biomass a Viable Goal, but at High Price, New Research Shows
by Phil Ciciora (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) A team of researchers led by Madhu Khanna, a professor of agricultural
February 22, 2011 Read Full Article
Biomass Feedstock Harvest from Conservation Reserve Program Land in Northwestern Oklahoma
by B. C. Venuto and J. A. Daniel (Crop Science) Development of a biofuel industry based on biomass will require
March 19, 2010 Read Full Article
The 7% Solution: Sustainable US Biofuels without International Indirect Land Use Effects
by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA) Looking at some real-world numbers, it becomes clear that the fear raised in