Washington, DC
June 7, 2007
U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel
Bodman and Agriculture Secretary
Mike Johanns today announced that the Department of Energy and
the Department of Agriculture have jointly selected 11 projects
for awards totaling $8.3 million for biobased fuels research
that will accelerate the development of alternative fuel
resources.
“These research projects build
upon DOE’s strategic investments in genomics and biotechnology
and strengthen our commitment to developing a robust bioenergy
future vital to America’s energy and economic security,”
Secretary Bodman said.
“To help meet President Bush's
goal to reduce gasoline consumption by 20 percent in ten years,
research and alternative fuel production needs to expand beyond
corn ethanol,” Secretary Johanns said. “These grants diversify
the portfolio of research by looking into new ways to develop
cordgrass, rice and switchgrass in renewable energy sources.”
These awards continue a
commitment begun in 2006 to conduct fundamental research in
biomass genomics that will provide the scientific foundation to
facilitate and accelerate the use of woody plant tissue for
bioenergy and biofuels. The program was announced at last
year’s Advancing Renewable Energy: An American Rural
Renaissance, a conference jointly hosted by the two agencies in
St. Louis, MO. The awards are part of a greater research
portfolio that will help meet President Bush’s goal to reduce
gasoline consumption by 20 percent in ten years.
The awards will be made through
the Office of Biological and Environmental Research (OBER) in
DOE’s Office of Science (SC), and USDA’s Cooperative State
Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES) National
Research Initiative (NRI). In this second year of the program,
new research projects on cordgrass, rice, switchgrass, sorghum,
poplar, and perennial grasses join the portfolio of research on
poplar, alfalfa, sorghum, and wheat.
Starting in 2007, DOE will
provide $5.5 million in funding for seven projects, while USDA
will award more than $1.5 million to fund three projects; one
project will receive $1.3 million in joint funding from both
agencies. Initial funding will support research projects for up
to three years.
Awards have been selected for:
- University of Minnesota,
$715,000
- South Dakota State
University , $420,000Mississippi State University,
$1,300,000
- University of Georgia,
$400,000
- Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University, $1,200,000
- University of Florida,
$750,000
- University of Delaware,
$600,000
- USDA-ARS Western Regional
Research Center (Albany, CA), $600,000
- USDA-ARS Western Regional
Research Center (Albany, CA), $600,000
- USDA-ARS (Cornell
University), $700,000
- Oak Ridge National
Laboratory, $1,040,000
Additional information on the
individual research projects and the joint program is available
on the
Genomics:GTL website.
CSREES advances knowledge for
agriculture, the environment, human health and well-being, and
communities by supporting research, education, and extension
programs in the Land-Grant University System. Additional
information is available at the
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
website.
OBER manages a diverse
portfolio of research to develop fundamental biological
information and to advance technology in support of DOE’s
missions in biology, medicine and the environment. Visit the
Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program for more
information. |
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