University invests in fuel alternatives

    University faculty and alumni are aiding in the advancement of biomass as an alternative fuel.
    Biomass consists of unused crops or waste from living organisms used to produce energy, Tony Brannon, dean of the School of Agriculture, said.
    Biomass is a renewable resource the Regional Strategy for Biobased Products in the Mississippi Delta hopes will provide for future local energy source needs.
    The Regional Strategy for Biobased Products in the Mississippi Delta program is in its final stages with Brannon and Loretta Daniel, assistant director of the Regional Business and Innovation Center.
    The Regional Strategy for Biobased Products in the Mississippi Delta is coordinating in Kentucky mainly through Murray State’s help, Murray State’s agriculture Web site stated.
    Participating sponsors are MSU School of Agriculture, MSU College of Business and Public Affairs, MSU Regional Business and Innovation Center, MSU Regional Stewardship, Purchase Area Development District and the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund from Calloway, Carlisle, Ballard and Graves County, Brannon said.
    A group of regional leadership organizations have established a comprehensive plan for improving the bio-economy in 98 counties along the Mississippi River in Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee, murraystate.edu/agr stated.
    Hilary Spain, a Murray State graduate from Hopkinsville, Ky., works for AgBioworks in Memphis, Tenn., and contacted the eight Kentucky counties along the Mississippi about the study, Brannon said.
    “Biomass is going to be very important in the future of energy generation in our country,” Brannon said.
    It is estimated biomass production will generate nearly $1.7 billion of revenue annually, Brannon said.
    “The growth of biomass will also benefit farmers, who will see a higher income for alternative crops and a boosted yield in other crops on rotation at the farms,” Brannon said.
    Murray State’s agricultural department got involved with the program and began working with biomass in March 2009, Brannon said.
    The Midsouth has an abundance of biomass, a highly flexible resource, Brannon said.
    “The biomass project is quickly moving from the planning stage to the implementation stage,” Brannon said.
    An executive task force on biomass and biofuels will finalize the recommendations for legislative action on Nov. 4, according to Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear’s executive task force work plan.
    The findings and recommendations of the Regional Strategy for Biobased Products will be presented to Beshear on Nov. 30, according to the plan.
    The first recommended step is building a local supply chain with products the land produces locally, Brannon said.
    Step two of the recommendations is attracting technology to make advanced products in the future, Brannon said.
    “We will eventually run out of petroleum and we need a replacement.  Biomass can help meet that potential and our geographic area allows us to grow plants extremely well,” Brannon said.
    Contact Thornton at casey.thornton@murraystate.edu.
 

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