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Impacts of a 32-billion-gallon bioenergy landscape on land and fossil fuel use in the US

Author

Listed:
  • Tara W. Hudiburg

    (Rangeland, and Fire Sciences, 875 Perimeter Drive, University of Idaho)

  • WeiWei Wang

    (1301 W. Gregory Drive, University of Illinois, Urbana)

  • Madhu Khanna

    (1301 W. Gregory Drive, University of Illinois, Urbana)

  • Stephen P. Long

    (505 South Goodwin Avenue, University of Illinois)

  • Puneet Dwivedi

    (Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, 180 E Green Street, University of Georgia)

  • William J. Parton

    (Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University)

  • Melannie Hartman

    (Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University)

  • Evan H. DeLucia

    (505 South Goodwin Avenue, University of Illinois)

Abstract

Sustainable transportation biofuels may require considerable changes in land use to meet mandated targets. Understanding the possible impact of different policies on land use and greenhouse gas emissions has typically proceeded by exploring either ecosystem or economic modelling. Here we integrate such models to assess the potential for the US Renewable Fuel Standard to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector through the use of cellulosic biofuels. We find that 2022 US emissions are decreased by 7.0 ± 2.5% largely through gasoline displacement and soil carbon storage by perennial grasses. If the Renewable Fuel Standard is accompanied by a cellulosic biofuel tax credit, these emissions could be reduced by 12.3 ± 3.4%. Our integrated approach indicates that transitioning to cellulosic biofuels can meet a 32-billion-gallon Renewable Fuel Standard target with negligible effects on food crop production, while reducing fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions. However, emissions savings are lower than previous estimates that did not account for economic constraints.

Suggested Citation

  • Tara W. Hudiburg & WeiWei Wang & Madhu Khanna & Stephen P. Long & Puneet Dwivedi & William J. Parton & Melannie Hartman & Evan H. DeLucia, 2016. "Impacts of a 32-billion-gallon bioenergy landscape on land and fossil fuel use in the US," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 1(1), pages 1-7, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natene:v:1:y:2016:i:1:d:10.1038_nenergy.2015.5
    DOI: 10.1038/nenergy.2015.5
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    Cited by:

    1. Burli, Pralhad H. & Nguyen, Ruby T. & Hartley, Damon S. & Griffel, L. Michael & Vazhnik, Veronika & Lin, Yingqian, 2021. "Farmer characteristics and decision-making: A model for bioenergy crop adoption," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    2. Chen, Xiaoguang & Önal, Hayri, 2016. "Renewable energy policies and competition for biomass: Implications for land use, food prices, and processing industry," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 270-278.
    3. Monia El Akkari & Nosra Ben Fradj & Benoît Gabrielle & Sylvestre Njakou Djomo, 2023. "Spatially-explicit environmental assessment of bioethanol from miscanthus and switchgrass in France [Évaluation environnementale spatialement explicite du bioéthanol produit à partir de miscanthus ," Post-Print hal-04369771, HAL.
    4. Chen, Xiaoguang & Khanna, Madhu, 2018. "Effect of corn ethanol production on Conservation Reserve Program acres in the US," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 225(C), pages 124-134.
    5. Plevin, Richard J. & Delucchi, Mark A. & O’Hare, Michael, 2017. "Fuel carbon intensity standards may not mitigate climate change," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 93-97.
    6. Perrin, Aurelie & Wohlfahrt, Julie & Morandi, Fabiana & Østergård, Hanne & Flatberg, Truls & De La Rua, Cristina & Bjørkvoll, Thor & Gabrielle, Benoit, 2017. "Integrated design and sustainable assessment of innovative biomass supply chains: A case-study on miscanthus in France," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 66-77.
    7. Mohd Alsaleh & Azeem Oluwaseyi Zubair & Abdul Samad Abdul‐Rahim, 2020. "The impact of global competitiveness on the growth of bioenergy industry in EU‐28 region," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(5), pages 1304-1316, September.
    8. Huang, Shiyang & Hu, Guiping & Chennault, Carrie & Su, Liu & Brandes, Elke & Heaton, Emily & Schulte, Lisa & Wang, Lizhi & Tyndall, John, 2016. "Agent-based modeling of bioenergy crop adoption and farmer decision-making," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 115(P1), pages 1188-1201.
    9. Ko, Chun-Han & Chaiprapat, Sumate & Kim, Lee-Hyung & Hadi, Pejman & Hsu, Shu-Chien & Leu, Shao-Yuan, 2017. "Carbon sequestration potential via energy harvesting from agricultural biomass residues in Mekong River basin, Southeast Asia," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 68(P2), pages 1051-1062.
    10. Pereira, L.G. & Cavalett, O. & Bonomi, A. & Zhang, Y. & Warner, E. & Chum, H.L., 2019. "Comparison of biofuel life-cycle GHG emissions assessment tools: The case studies of ethanol produced from sugarcane, corn, and wheat," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 1-12.
    11. Miao, Ruiqing & Khanna, Madhu, 2017. "Costs of meeting a cellulosic biofuel mandate with perennial energy crops: Implications for policy," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 321-334.
    12. Majeed, Fahd & Khanna, Madhu & Miao, Ruiqing & Betes, Elena Blanc & Hudiburg, Tara & DeLucia, Evan, 2022. "Payment for carbon mitigation reduces riskiness of bioenergy crop production," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322277, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    13. Anthony Oliver & Madhu Khanna, 2018. "The spatial distribution of welfare costs of Renewable Portfolio Standards in the United States electricity sector," Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences, Springer, vol. 11(3), pages 269-287, October.
    14. Weiwei Wang, 2022. "Agricultural and Forestry Biomass for Meeting the Renewable Fuel Standard: Implications for Land Use and GHG Emissions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-21, November.
    15. Deepayan Debnath & Madhu Khanna & Deepak Rajagopal & David Zilberman, 2019. "The Future of Biofuels in an Electrifying Global Transportation Sector: Imperative, Prospects and Challenges," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 41(4), pages 563-582, December.
    16. Weiwei Wang, 2023. "Integrated Assessment of Economic Supply and Environmental Effects of Biomass Co-Firing in Coal Power Plants: A Case Study of Jiangsu, China," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-22, March.
    17. Mohit Anand & Ruiqing Miao & Madhu Khanna, 2019. "Adopting bioenergy crops: Does farmers’ attitude toward loss matter?," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 50(4), pages 435-450, July.
    18. Fan, Xinxin & Khanna, Madhu & Hartman, Theodore & VanLoocke, Andy, 2023. "Designing Payments for Multiple Ecosystem Services with Advanced Biofuels in the Mississippi River Basin," 2023 Annual Meeting, July 23-25, Washington D.C. 335787, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    19. Pulighe, Giuseppe & Pirelli, Tiziana, 2023. "Assessing the sustainability of bioenergy pathways through a land-water-energy nexus approach," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    20. Catherine L. Kling & Raymond W. Arritt & Gray Calhoun & David A. Keiser, 2017. "Integrated Assessment Models of the Food, Energy, and Water Nexus: A Review and an Outline of Research Needs," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 9(1), pages 143-163, October.

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