By Hilda Diaz-Soltero usda senior Invasive Species Coordinator

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  Switchgrass breeding for Northern Great Plaines and Great Lakes regions (multi-location effort)
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Selection methodology and high-throughput phenotyping tools for biofuel grasses
  

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  Mike Casler (Madison, WI)
  

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  Association and linkage mapping of QTL for bioenergy traits in switchgrass and reed canarygrass
  

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  Mike Casler (Madison, WI)
  

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  Hybrid production systems and heterotic germplasm groups in switchgrass
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Development of switchgrass cultivars and hybrids with increased biomass yields and conversion efficiency via conventional and molecular breeding
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  New breeding technology for switchgrass including the production of hybrid cultivars
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Improved germplasm of forage sorghums for cellulosic ethanol
  

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  Jeff Pedersen (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  New alfalfa germplasm better suited for bioenergy systems with greater stem yield and resistance to lodging when harvested at later maturity
  

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  JoAnn Lamb (St. Paul, MN)
  

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  Plant selection for increased cellulose and reduced lignin content of alfalfa stems to increase ethanol conversion efficiency
  

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  JoAnn Lamb (St. Paul, MN)
  

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  Breeding and selection of varieties with high sucrose and high fiber (i.e., energy cane)
  

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  Anna Hale (Houma, LA)
  

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  Increasing cold tolerance of cane to expand its cultivation to cooler regions
  

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  Anna Hale (Houma, LA)
  

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  Conventional and molecular (AFLP) breeding of Bermudagrass as a dual-purpose crop for forage or biorefining
  

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  Bill Anderson (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Breeding varieties of Napiergrass as a dedicated energy crop
  

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  Bill Anderson (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Breeding varieties of pearl millet for starch fermentation
  

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  Jeff Wilson (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Screening sweet sorghum as an energy crop
  

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  Bill Anderson (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Determination of the impact of latitude on the growth and development of switchgrass
  

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  Mike Casler (Madison, WI)
  

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  Improved alfalfa management system that reduces cost by using less seed and harvesting less frequently, and also increases yield in a bioenergy production system
  

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  JoAnn Lamb (St. Paul, MN)
  

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  Optimal switchgrass establishment practices to reduce the time to full production
  

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  Matt Sanderson (University Park, PA)
  

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  Evaluation of the potential of CRP and other conservation grasslands for bioenergy production
  

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  Matt Sanderson (University Park, PA)
  

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  Characterization of the effect of switchgrass seasonal harvest time and frequency on biomass yield, feedstock quality, stand stability and persistence, and system economics
  

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  Matt Sanderson (University Park, PA)
  

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  Cropping systems that integrate perennial species (e.g., Miscanthus, and Erianthus) and annual species (e.g., sweet sorghum) with sugar/energy canes to ensure year around supply of feedstocks for local biorefineries
  

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  Thomas Tew(Houma, LA)
  

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  Management strategies for sugar and energy canes to extend harvest seasons, improve yields, and/or reduce production costs
  

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  Thomas Tew (Houma, LA)
  

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  Determination of the amount of crop residue (e.g. corn stover, wheat straw, cover crop) that must remain on the land to maintain soil organic carbon and sustain productivity (multi-location effort)
  

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  Doug Karlen (Ames, IA)
  

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  Estimation of the trade-off between short-term economic return to growers who harvest crop residues for biorefining versus the long-term benefits of retaining crop residues to build soil organic matter and sequester carbon (multi-location effort)
  

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  Doug Karlen (Ames, IA)
  

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  Management strategies (e.g. no-tillage, cover crops, intensive production practices) to support the sustainable harvest of crop residues (multi-location effort)
  

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  Doug Karlen (Ames, IA)
  

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  Determination of partitioning of nutrients, sugar and fiber in harvested corn stover as a function of cut height for various locations across the nation (multi-location effort)
  

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  Doug Karlen (Ames, IA)
  

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  Evaluation of the effects of biochar on C sequestration, soil properties, and sustainability of biomass harvest (multi-location effort)
  

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  David Laird (Ames, IA)
  

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  Evaluation of alternate use of annual and perennial cover crops to enhance sustainability of biomass harvest
  

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  Jeremy Singer (Ames, IA)
  

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  Optimal production and harvesting practices for switchgrass in the Midwest
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Effects of harvest and storage practices on switchgrass yield/losses, feedstock quality and ethanol yield
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Biomass production potential of warm-season grass monocultures and polycultures in the Midwest
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Growth of native legumes with switchgrass to reduce exogenous nitrogen inputs
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Soil carbon response to converting perennial grasslands to annual cropland
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Herbicides for establishing switchgrass in the Central and Northern Great Plains
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Spatial and temporal effects on switchgrass stands and yield in the Great Plains
  

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  Marty Schmer (Mandan, ND)
  

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  Farm-scale research on economics and net energy balance of switchgrass production systems
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Long-term carbon sequestration and biomass production potential of switchgrass and maize managed for bioenergy
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Optimization of production practices for switchgrass and big bluestem as dual-purpose crops (forage or biorefining) in the northern Great Plains
  

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  Jon Hanson (Mandan, ND)
  

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  Development of economically-viable management systems to incorporate biomass crops within traditional crop rotation systems
  

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  Jon Hanson (Mandan, ND)
  

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  Evaluation of Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana L.) as a biofuel feedstock
  

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  Brad Venuto (El Reno, OK)
  

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  Use of bioenergy crops (pearl millet, corn) in rotational systems for the water-limited Southeast
  

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  Clint Truman (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Use of Napiergrass as harvestable component of Southeastern riparian buffer systems
  

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  Tim Strickland (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Effect of inorganic or poultry litter fertilization on Napiergrass production, soil carbon accretion, and offsite water quality
  

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  Bob Hubbard (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Effect of conservation tillage and winter cover crop selection on sweet sorghum production, soil carbon accretion, and nitrogen balance
  

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  Tim Strickland (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Winter cover crops as bioenergy feedstock and effect on soil carbon accretion and nitrogen balances in the Southeastern Coastal Plain
  

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  Tim Strickland (Tifton, GA)
  

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  Production practices for winter cover crops harvested for bioenergy
  

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  Randy Raper (Booneville, AR)    
  

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  Production practices for sorghum, an annual energy crop
  

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  Randy Raper (Booneville, AR)    
  

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  Harvesting systems for energy crops in the southeastern U.S.
  

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  Randy Raper (Booneville, AR)    
  

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  Carbon sequestration potential of switchgrass in the southeastern U.S.
  

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  Randy Raper (Booneville, AR)    
  

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  Cropping systems to follow switchgrass
  

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  Randy Raper (Booneville, AR)    
  

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  Soil carbon accrual rates from switchgrass stands in the northern Great Plains
  

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  Jon Hanson (Mandan, ND)
  

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  Diversified and sustainable production systems for bioenergy crops (switchgrass, gamma grass, sorghum, legumes) in the southern Great Plains and especially on CRP land
  

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  Brad Venuto (El Reno, OK)
  

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  Identify and develop new and alternative crops and cropping strategies for the northern U.S., including those that integrate bioenergy and food crops
  

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  Russ Gesch (Morris, MN)
  
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  Evaluate impacts of global environmental changes on energy crops
  
  • 
    Jane Johnson (Morris, MN)
    
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  Develop and evaluate cropping systems for optimal biomass production that maintain or enhance soil productivity
  
  • 
    Sharon Weyers, (Morris, MN)
    

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  Modeling the profitability and sustainability of biomass production systems integrated into agricultural operations
  

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  Peter Vadas (Madison, WI)
  

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  Rapid and inexpensive NIRS assessment tools to measure composition and quality of alfalfa, switchgrass, bermudagrass, and corn stover for cellulosic ethanol production (multi-location effort)
  

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  Ken Vogel (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Comparison of simulated and observed N₂O gas emission rates from bioenergy cropping systems
  

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  Curtis Dell (University Park, PA)
  

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  Life cycle assessments of net greenhouse gas flux for the bioenergy cropping systems
  

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  Paul Adler (University Park, PA)
  

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  Robust algorithm(s) to guide the amount of crop residue that can be sustainably harvested as feedstock for biorefining without degrading the soil resource, environmental quality, or agronomic productivity
  

• 
  Jane Johnson (Morris, MN)
  
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  Determine impact of management strategies (biomass removal e.g., corn stover) on nutrient, soil carbon, and organic matter dynamics
  
  • 
    Sharon Papiernik, (Morris, MN)
    
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  Assess greenhouse gas emission and C storage from traditional (e.g. corn, soybean) and cellulosic (e.g., switchgrass) energy crops
  
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  Jane Johnson, (Morris, MN)
  
  • 
    Assess impacts of corn stover harvest on greenhouse gas emission and C storage. Jane Johnson, (Morris, MN)
    
  • 
    Develop energy budgets to compare energy use in biomass production systems and evaluate the use of biomass for bioenergy feedstock versus livestock production
    
    • 
      Sharon Weyers, (Morris, MN)
      

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  New seedlot evaluation techniques to better predict field establishment for switchgrass
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  New assessment tool to estimate biomass production and determine the need for management practices
  

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  Rob Mitchell (Lincoln, NE)
  

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  Optimization of profitable and sustainable utilization of agricultural residues for bioenergy production
  

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  Jerry Whittaker (Corvallis, OR)
  

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  Quantification of micronutrients, macronutrients and carbon removed with residue harvest
  

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  Gary Banowetz (Corvallis, OR)    
  

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  Interaction between livestock manures and perennial grasses
  

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  Phillip Moore (Fayetteville, AR)
  

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  Farm-scale gasification of agricultural wastes
  

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  Gary Banowetz (Corvallis, OR)
  

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  Thermochemical biorefining of energy crops, crop residues and crop processing wastes
  

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  Kwesi Boateng (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Farm-Scale distributed pyrolysis of biomass to produce crude bio-oil
  

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  Kwesi Boateng (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Production of bio-char via farm-scale pyrolysis
  

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  Kwesi Boateng (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Value-added co-products from pyrolysis oils derived from vegetable oils or biomass
  

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  Mike Jackson (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Non-activated and activated bio-char from agricultural wastes that increase soil productivity or can absorb pollutants
  

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  Isabel Lima (New Orleans, LA)
  

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  Thermal degradation kinetics of animal manure and biomass feedstock
  

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  Keri Cantrell (Florence, SC)
  

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  Manures and lignocellulosic biomass to biofuels and charcoal (green coal)
  

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  Kyoung Ro (Florence, SC)
  

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  Production of combustible gases from gasification and pyrolysis  of blended animal manures
  

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  Kyoung Ro (Florence, SC)
  

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  Production of liquid fuels from syngas derived from blends of animal manures and hays
  

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  Kyoung Ro (Florence, SC)
  

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  Microbial production of hydrogen
  

• 
  Mike Cotta (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Biobutanol
  

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  Nasib Qureshi (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Harvest/storage methods for perennial plant materials (switchgrass, reed canarygrass, alfalfa)
  

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  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  Biorefining of citrus processing waste
  

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  Bill Widmer (Winterhaven, FL)
  

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  Biorefining of agricultural wastes
  

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  Kevin Holtman (Albany, CA)
  

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  Biorefining of commingled municipal solid wastes and agricultural wastes
  

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  Kevin Holtman (Albany, CA)
  

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  Energy-efficient recovery of alcohols via solvent extraction and membrane permeation technologies
  

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  Rick Offeman (Albany, CA)
  

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  New techniques to fractionate sugar beet pulp into high valued pectins, hemicellulose and cellulose
  

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  Kevin Hicks (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  New pretreatment and enzymatic processes for biorefining non-edible crop residues and byproducts
  

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  John Nghiem (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Develop new high-value co-products from cellulosic biorefining to ethanol
  

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  David Johnston (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  On-farm ensiling-based pretreatment
  

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  Peter Vadas (Madison, WI)
  

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  Correlation of major cell wall components with biofuels yield
  

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  Kevin Holtman (Albany, CA)
  

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  Enzyme cocktails for deconstructing hemicellulose
  

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  Dominic Wong (Albany, CA)
  

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  Enzyme cocktails for pretreatment of ligno-celluloses
  

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  Dominic Wong (Albany, CA)
  

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  Harvesting DNA from nature (via metagenomics) for wood and straw degradation
  

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  Dominic Wong (Albany, CA)
  

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  Novel screens for detecting high-activity cellulases and hemicellulases
  

• 
  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  New, economically efficient enzymes for ligno-cellulosic biorefineries
  

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  Douglas Jordan (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Novel enzymes for biomass saccharification
  

• 
  Ken Bischoff (Peoria, IL)
  

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  New enzymes and enzyme expression systems for biomass hydrolysis
  

• 
  Jeffrey Mertens (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Evaluating ethanol yields from biomass crops [e.g., switchgrass, reed canary grass, alfalfa]
  

• 
  Bruce Dien (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Developing advanced biochemical processes for production of ethanol from energy crops
  

• 
  Bruce Dien (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Screening of ligno-cellulosic feedstocks for fermentability
  

• 
  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  Novel abatement strategy for removal of fermentation inhibitors in biomass hydrolysates
  

• 
  Nancy Nichols (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Pretreatment, saccharification, and fermentation processes for biorefining of agricultural residues such as wheat straw, barley straw and rice hulls
  

• 
  Badal Saha (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Characterization of oligosaccharide products derived from enzymatic depolymerization of biomass
  

• 
  Michael Bowman  (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Engineering yeast for enhanced xylose fermentation
  

• 
  Ronald Hector (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Engineering yeast that tolerate or detoxify fermentation inhibitors
  

• 
  Z. Lewis Liu (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Novel robotic plasmid-based proteomic workcell for construction and high-throughput screening of improved ethanologenic biocatalysts
  

• 
  Steve Hughes (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Engineering yeast to produce ethanol and value-added co-products from all biomass-derived sugars, including pentosans
  

• 
  Steve Hughes (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Lactobacillus and gram-positive anaerobic bacteria for converting biomass to fuels
  

• 
  Siqing Liu (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Producing specialty chemicals from lignin
  

• 
  Joseph Rich (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Electrochemical conversion of fermentation acids to hydrocarbon fuels
  

• 
  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  Single-step conversion of cellulosic substrates using cellulolytic, ethanologenic bacteria
  

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  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  Glycocalyx adhesive co-product
  

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  Paul Weimer (Madison, WI)
  

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  Producing xylitol from pentose sugars in biomass
  

• 
  Badal Saha (Peoria, IL)
  

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  Co-products from ligno-cellulosic biorefineries
  

• 
  Greg Glenn (Albany, CA)
  

• 
  Low-cost feedstocks for biodiesel production (e.g., tallow, lard, poultry fat, soapstock, trap grease)
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Producing biodiesel from Pennycress oils
  

• 
  Terry Isbell (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Producing biodiesel from peanut oils
  

• 
  Chris Butts (Dawson, GA)
  

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  Solid phase catalysts, enzymatic and nonenzymatic, for biodiesel production
  

• 
  Helen Ngo (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Direct production of biodiesel from the fats and oils in biological materials
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Antioxidant addition to reduce NO_x emissions
  

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  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Impact of double bond modification on NO_x emissions
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

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  Association of unreacted glyceride species, free fatty acids, and sterol glycosides in biodiesel production failure events
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Rapid, facile, and widely applicable analytical methods for glycerol in biodiesel fuels
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Rapid analytical methods for measuring biodiesel blend levels and residual oil levels
  

• 
  Mike Haas (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Effect of contaminants such as monoglycerides and sterol glucosides on long-term stability and cold flow properties of fuel
  

• 
  Robert Dunn (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Thermodynamic modeling to predict effect of chemical composition on cloud point
  

• 
  Robert Dunn (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Refining processes to improve cold weather performance
  

• 
  Robert Dunn (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Effects of oxidative degradation on fuel quality
  

• 
  Robert Dunn (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Reduction of biodiesel cloud point via lipid-derived fuel additives that inhibit crystalline formation/growth
  

• 
  Bryan Moser (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Biodiesel from Pennycress and camelina oils
  

• 
  Bryan Moser (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Antioxidants for improving oxidative stability during long-term storage
  

• 
  Bryan Moser (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  How the chemical structure of biodiesel components affects fuel performance and combustion emissions
  

• 
  Gary Knothe (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Chemically modified cottonseed oil components as biodiesel additives
  

• 
  Mike Dowd (New Orleans, LA)
  

• 
  Emissions reduction technologies for biodiesel
  

• 
  Gary Knothe (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Analytical methods for biodiesel production and quality assessment
  

• 
  Gary Knothe (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Optimizing biodiesel properties by modifying the fatty acid profile of the feed oil(s)
  

• 
  Gary Knothe (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Polymers (hyperbranched and dendrimeric) from glycerol co-product
  

• 
  Victor Wyatt (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Functionalized estolides from glycerol co-product
  

• 
  Jonathan Zerkowski (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Reactive hyperbranched pre-polymers from glycerol co-product
  

• 
  Jonathan Zerkowski (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Biodegradable polymers from byproduct glycerol
  

• 
  Rick Ashby (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Specialty chemicals from byproduct glycerol
  

• 
  Rick Ashby (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Glycerol derivatives to improve low-temperature properties of biolubricants
  

• 
  Shailesh Shah (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Polyols from glycerol via yeast biocatalysis
  

• 
  Cletus Kurtzman (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Computerized process models for estimating capital and operating costs in biodiesel production
  

• 
  Andy McAloon (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Control of bacterial contaminants in fuel ethanol plants
  

• 
  Tim Leathers (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  New aqueous/enzymatic methods to extract corn oil from corn germ without hazardous organic solvents
  

• 
  Bob Moreau (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  New enzymatic processes to improve the quality of food & feed co-products and increase biorefining efficiencies
  

• 
  David Johnston (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Reducing green house gas emissions, energy and water usage in the US corn ethanol industry
  

• 
  David Johnston (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Fuel ethanol and valuable co-products from alternative grains such as Winter barley
  

• 
  Kevin Hicks (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  New processes to allow the conversion of biomass feedstocks in corn ethanol plants
  
  • 
    Kevin Hicks (Wyndmoor, PA)
    
• 
  Co-products from biorefining of starches
  

• 
  Greg Glenn (Albany, CA)
  

• 
  Increasing the value of distillers grains co-products
  

• 
  Kurt Rosentrater (Brookings, SD)
  

• 
  Converting sweet sorghum bagasse to ethanol
  

• 
  Z. Lewis Liu (Peoria, IL)
  

• 
  Computerized process-cost models that identify best research for improving biorefining economics, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability
  

• 
  Andy McAloon (Wyndmoor, PA)
  

• 
  Sugarcane and sweet sorghum processing for food and fuel
  

• 
  Gillian Eggleston (New Orleans,LA)
  

NIFA Response: Beginning in 2007, CSREES National Research Initiative (NRI) Program Biology of Weedy and Invasive Species in Agroecosystems has required an economic component in the integrated projects it funds. Specifically, the focus of such programs is the development, delivery, and implementation of ecologically-based, invasive species management programs (e.g. use of cover crops, grazing, tillage, and biocontrol agents) that include economic decision support tools to evaluate tradeoffs of different management strategies. A total of $4 million was awarded such projects. This priority was continued in the new Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) grants program in FY09 (and will continue in FY10), with an additional priority focusing on the abundance of weedy and invasive species and the individual and/or collective impacts of these species on a broad suite of ecosystem services, both market and non-market, and that can be used to evaluate tradeoffs of different management strategies.

NISC staff should respond to this question. USDA and APHIS participated in the latest review of the proposed invasive species guidance.