HERBACEOUS BIOMASS FEEDSTOCK PRODUCTION - THE ECONOMIC-POTENTIAL AND IMPACTS ON UNITED-STATES AGRICULTURE

This paper addresses the economic feasibility and impacts on US agricu lture of establishing a biomass crop industry capable of producing 8.4 million GJ of methanol or 9.9 million GJ of ethanol by the year 2030 from grasses grown as biomass feedstocks. The results suggest that suc h an industry could become commercially viable and that the agricultur al economy would benefit. Producers of traditional and biomass crops w ould benefit most. Consumers and livestock producers would lose from h igher crop prices, but these losses would be offset by gains to societ y from reduced government payments to crop producers.