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Switchgrass Production As a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi

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Switchgrass Production As a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi Bulletin 1210 December 2014 Switchgrass Production as a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi MISSISSIPPI AGRICULTURAL & FORESTRY EXPERIMENT STATION • GEORGE M. HOPPER, DIRECTOR MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY • MARK E. KEENUM, PRESIDENT • GREGORY A. BOHACH, VICE PRESIDENT Switchgrass Production as a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi Mark W. Shankle Research Professor Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station Mississippi State University Trevor F. Garrett Research Associate Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station Mississippi State University This research was sponsored by the Sustainable Energy Research Center at Mississippi State University with funding from the United States Department of Energy and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.The report was approved for publication as MAFES Bulletin 1210 of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. It was published by the Office of Agricultural Communications, a unit of the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Med- icine at Mississippi State University. Copyright 2014 by Mississippi State University. All rights reserved. This publication may be copied and distributed without alteration for nonprofit educational purposes provided that credit is given to the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. Switchgrass Production as a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi INTRODUCTION The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) for the production of second-generation biofuels of 2007 was signed into law to address energy policy in (Blanco-Canqui 2010, Wright and Turhollow 2010, the United States (H.R. 6 — 110th Congress, 2007). Wullschleger et al. 2010). The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in the EISA man- Switchgrass has been identified as a promising dated that the total amount of biofuel added to gasoline feedstock due to its extensive deep-root system, rapid be increased from 4.7 billion gallons in 2007 to 36 growth, broad range of adaptability, high drought toler- billion gallons in 2022. It also required 21 of the 36 ance, and high biomass yield (Sanderson et al. 1996). A billion gallons be derived from non-cornstarch feed- review by Blanco-Canqui (2010) suggested that stock (i.e., sugar or cellulose). Therefore, a key activity switchgrass and other warm-season, perennial grasses of the Biomass Program within the Office of Energy can improve soil quality, sequester soil organic carbon, Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) at the reduce soil erosion, and improve wildlife habitat, United States Department of Energy (DOE) is to iden- which will have a greater positive impact on the envi- tify and develop a sustainable, high-quality feedstock ronment when compared with row crops such as corn. supply for a biomass-to-bioenergy supply chain. This impact is important since marginal lands with Currently, corn-based ethanol is an important limited resources are being considered as the primary source of biofuel and contributes roughly 10% to our source of land for cellulosic crop production (Adler et domestic fuel needs. However, in 2010–11 it took al. 2009, Bhardwaj et al. 2011, Blanco-Canqui 2010, roughly 40% of the U.S. corn crop to produce biofuels Lal 2009). and other products, which sparked a food-versus-fuel There is no single descriptive measure that identi- debate among concerned citizens, researchers, and fies land to be classified as marginal, but it will leaders worldwide. Therefore, a number of annual and typically feature poor land quality characterized by a perennial herbaceous crops and short-rotational trees low nutrient status, undesirable soil pH, and a high have been considered for dedicated energy crops. erodibility factor resulting in an unsuitable environ- Results from multi-institutional research studies indi- ment for row-crop production. A review prepared by cate that perennial, warm-season grasses—specifically the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.)—have a high Nations (FAO) suggests that biophysical and socio-eco- potential to serve as lignocellulosic feedstock materials nomic data should be considered when evaluating Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station 1 land-use options (FAO 2007). Biophysical data The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a includes factors of climate, topography, hydrology, soil contract payment program in the farm bill written by characteristics, land degradation, and land cover. the U.S. government, directed by the U.S. Department Socio-economic data includes land-use and manage- of Agriculture (USDA), administered by USDA Farm ment. Bhardwaj et al. (2011) suggests that even though Service Agency (FSA), and with technical assistance there are several factors that distinguish the concept of provided by the USDA Forest Service and USDA marginality, biophysical limitations will be the ulti- Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). CRP mately causal factor of unacceptable socio-economic is a voluntary program that offers annual rental pay- conditions. ments and cost-share assistance for landowners to retire In addition, the influence of law, regulations, and marginal land from crop production if the FSA deter- public policy will have an effect on the decisions mines that the tract of land is eligible based on a landowners make concerning land-use and the resulting ranking system derived through the use of an Environ- environmental consequences (Robertson and Swinton mental Benefits Index (EBI) (Hellerstein and Malsolm 2005). For example, a special permit and surety bond 2011). must be obtained from the Department of Agriculture Establishment of native, warm-season, perennial and Commerce before a nonnative plant species can be grasses, especially switchgrass, plays a dominate role established in the state of Mississippi. This law was in the CRP because of the well-documented improve- passed to require a permit in order to identify areas ments to soil quality and wildlife habitat (Hamrick et where nonnative plants are cultivated as feedstock for al. 2007; Wright and Turhollow 2010). Bhardwaj the bioenergy industry. The surety bond is required to (2010) and colleagues compared water and energy foot- pay for removing the nonnative plants if the site is prints of no-till soybean grown for biofuel on marginal abandoned. land used for conventional row-crop production, land converted from CRP, and land in the CRP with grass cover (as a standard reference). Results from this House Bill 634 research indicated that soil quality was improved for physical structure, carbon storage, and nutrient avail- Mississippi Legislature 2012 Amendments authored by ability in marginal land with a CRP history, compared Preston Sullivan (22nd District) with marginal land utilized for conventional row-crop To prohibit the cultivation of certain production. nonnative plant species for the Others report similar benefits of growing perennial purpose of fuel production without grasses on marginal land, such as less intensive culti- vation once established, reduced wind and water first obtaining a special permit from erosion, higher microbial activity, and lower bulk the Department of Agriculture and density (Blanco-Canqui 2010, McLaughlin and Kszos Commerce for such cultivation; to 2005, Hamrick et al. 2007). These results demonstrated establish a remedy available to the that a nutrient-efficient, warm-season, perennial native department for the removal and grass such as switchgrass grown on marginal land will destruction of nonnative plant provide economic and ecological benefits while mini- species determined to be a nui- mizing competition for land resources dedicated to sance; and for related purposes. production of food and fiber crops. 2 Switchgrass Production as a Bioenergy Crop in Mississippi VARIETY SELECTION Overview Many variables are associated with switchgrass establishment. One of the first considerations is variety selection. There are two ecotypes available: lowland and upland. Lowland switchgrass vari- eties are tall, coarse plants that have 30–50% higher yield poten- tial over upland varieties in the South (Hancock 2009). Upland varieties are shorter and have lower yield potential compared with lowland varieties, but they are more adapted to drier, colder regions of North America and are very winter hardy once established (Gibson and Barnhart 2007). Figure 1. Varieties of switchgrass were evaluated at the Mississippi State University Pon- A trial was conducted from totoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station in Pontotoc County, Mississippi. 2007 to 2009 at the Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Experiment Station in Pontotoc County, Mississippi (34.138° N and tolerance, less percent lignin deposition, and improved 89.004° W), to evaluate commercially available establishment characteristics compared with original switchgrass varieties and several experimental breed- native varieties (Bhandari et al. 2010; Bouton 2006). ing lines (Figure 1). The varieties included in this study Materials and Methods are described in Table 1. The experimental synthetic breeding lines were a collaborative effort between the A trial was established on an Atwood silt loam (fine- Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation Inc., Ceres Inc., and silty, mixed, thermic Typic Paleududalfs) with a history the University of Georgia to develop high-biomass- of no-tillage cotton production and what was considered yielding varieties for the South with better drought good-quality soil. The design was a randomized com- Table 1. Information on switchgrass varieties
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