Land Use Implications of Expanding Biofuel Demand

The Renewable Fuel Standard mandates in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 will require 36 billion gallons of ethanol to be produced in 2022. The mandates require that 16 of the 36 billion gallons must be produced from cellulosic feedstocks. The potential land use implications resulting from these mandates were examined using two methods, the POLYSYS model and a general equilibrium model. Results of the POLYSYS analysis indicated that 72.1 million tons of corn stover, 23.5 million tons of wheat straw, and 24.7 million acres would be used to produce 109 million tons of switchgrass in 2025 to meet the mandate. Results of the CGE analysis indicated that 10.9 billion bushels of corn grain, 71 million tons of corn stover, and 56,200 tons of switchgrass is needed to meet the mandate.

[1]  D. Wichelns,et al.  Economic and policy implications of public support for ethanol production in California's San Joaquin Valley , 2005 .

[2]  B. Babcock,et al.  Agricultural Production Clubs: Viability and Welfare Implications , 2008 .

[3]  Luther G. Tweeten,et al.  Long-term Global Agricultural Output Supply-Demand Balance and Real Farm and Food Prices , 2008 .

[4]  M. Ruth,et al.  Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol Process Design and Economics Utilizing Co-Current Dilute Acid Prehydrolysis and Enzymatic Hydrolysis Current and Futuristic Scenarios , 1999 .

[5]  A. Gurgel,et al.  Will Recreation Demand for Land Limit Biofuels Production? , 2008 .

[6]  Frank Taylor,et al.  Determining the Cost of Producing Ethanol from Corn Starch and Lignocellulosic Feedstocks , 2000 .

[7]  Scott McDonald,et al.  Deriving a Global Social Accounting Matrix from GTAP Versions 5 and 6 Data , 2004, GTAP Technical Paper Series.

[8]  M. Morisset.  Cost of production surveys , 1994 .

[9]  Francis M. Epplin,et al.  Cost to produce and deliver switchgrass biomass to an ethanol-conversion facility in the southern plains of the United States , 1996 .

[10]  Stephen P. Slinsky,et al.  Bioenergy Crop Production in the United States: Potential Quantities, Land Use Changes, and Economic Impacts on the Agricultural Sector , 2003 .

[11]  Douglas G. Tiffany,et al.  Factors Associated with Success of Fuel Ethanol Producers , 2003 .

[12]  Bruce A. Babcock,et al.  The Long-Run Impact of Corn-Based Ethanol on the Grain, Oilseed, and Livestock Sectors: A Preliminary Assessment , 2006 .

[13]  Scott McDonald,et al.  Impact of Switching Production to Bioenergy Crops: The Switchgrass Example January 2005 , 2006 .

[14]  C. Herndon.  The Ethanolization of Agriculture and the Roles of Agricultural Economists , 2008, Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics.

[15]  W. Edwards,et al.  Does a Rising Biofuels Tide Raise All Boats? A Study of Cash Rent Determinants for Iowa Farmland under Hay and Pasture , 2008 .

[16]  Junjie Wu,et al.  Potential Environmental Impacts of Increased Reliance on Corn-Based Bioenergy , 2011 .

[17]  P. Derfler,et al.  The United States Department of Agriculture , 1872, Nature.

[18]  Kelly N. Ibsen,et al.  Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol Process Design and Economics Utilizing Co-Current Dilute Acid Prehydrolysis and Enzymatic Hydrolysis for Corn Stover , 2002 .

[19]  D. Ugarte.  The Economic Impacts of Bioenergy Crop Production on U.S. Agriculture , 2000 .

[20]  Andrew J. McAloon,et al.  Feasibility study for co-locating and integrating ethanol production plants from corn starch and lignocellulosic feedstocks , 2005 .

[21]  W. Tyner,et al.  Biofuels, Policy Options, and Their Implications: Analyses Using Partial and General Equilibrium Approaches , 2008 .

[22]  P. Kenkel,et al.  The Impact of Biofuel Production on Crop Production in the Southern Plains , 2007 .