Bringing cellulosic ethanol to the pump would require government support in biotech research and development, biorefinery construction and market expansion, said BIO president and chief executive Jim Greenwood.
“Biotech enzymes have been the key to enabling the use of crop wastes and other cellulosic matter in the production of ethanol. These advances have served to drive down the cost of this alternative fuel and increase its availability,” Greenwood said.
“We need huge volumes of ethanol to enhance our energy picture. Once we add crop wastes as the new ‘renewable crude oil’ we can begin to significantly ramp up ethanol production above current levels. The technology is ready today and sustainable agricultural feedstocks such as corn stover and wheat straw are abundantly available in most states.
“The President's biofuels initiative can help bring cellulosic ethanol to filling stations throughout the country within a few short years if we start now to build the biorefineries needed to produce large volumes of this domestically grown fuel.”
BIO said that breakthroughs in industrial biotechnology had dramatically reduced the cost of enzyme-based cellulosic ethanol production over the past five years.
But advances in new feedstocks, harvesting, storage, transportation and processing were still needed to produce renewable and sustainable transportation fuel at a price competitive with fuel from the mature petroleum industry.
