NRDC: Cellulosic ethanol from crop waste is good for Indiana

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released a study today that showed the potential benefits that cellulosic ethanol production from crop residues could bring to the state of Indiana. Specifically, the report said:

Existing usable Indiana crop and timber residues are sufficient to produce 770 million gallons of transportation fuels annually, equivalent to 28 percent of all the gasoline used in Indiana each year. An average corn farm could see potential gross revenue of $14,500 from harvesting corn stover. Ten cellulosic plants, each with a 50-million-gallon capacity would create 1,940 long-term jobs, $207 million in annual economic activity, and $12.4 million in local property taxes.

NRDC policy analyst Pierre Bull spoke on a conference call regarding the study which he summarized in a blog post for NRDC's SWiTCHBOARD.

POET has three ethanol production facilities in Indiana that produce about 200 million gallons of ethanol per year from corn starch. In the future, POET plans to add the ability to produce cellulosic ethanol from corn cobs (a portion of the stover) to those facilities which could produce as much as 75 million gallons per year. According to the details in the NRDC report, that would be a big boost to the state of Indiana.

For the full report from NRDC, click here.