Providing Feedstock for Biofuels While Maintaining Ecosystem Services

Perennial crops species reportedly maintain higher soil nutrient levels and are more efficient at using water and nutrients than annual crops, thus reducing nutrients requirements, run-off and greenhouses gas emissions. Perennial systems offer the potential to improve soil quality, reduce erosion, and improve water, air, and habitat quality. However, annual cropping systems provide higher productivity and allow producers more profit producing opportunities through greater crop flexibility. No-till systems may provide similar soil quality and ecosystems services as perennial systems. Additional issues must be addressed for sustainable bioenergy feedstock production systems. The first is in-depth water, energy and economic analyses of systems involving crop species of interest. Such analyses are important because the production inputs and conversion rates influence the energy balance, economic benefits, and life-cycle attributes of each system and are necessary for producers and policy makers to make appropriate decisions regarding adoption of select and attainable systems for large-scale biofuel production. The second issue is the impact biomass removal on soil, water and other natural resources. These issues required research to determine the appropriate management strategies (species selection, cropping system, and harvest intensity) for sustainable and compatible systems.