SubscribeNorth Carolina’s Strategic Plan for Biofuels
North Carolina's Strategic Plan for Biofuels Leadership was a key topic discussed today at a two-day international biofuels forum at the DeDoelen Conference Centre.
Non-Corn Feedstocks for Biofuels
Steven Burke, senior vice president of corporate affairs with the North Carolina Biotechnology Center and board chairman of the newly opened Biofuels Center of North Carolina, was invited by the Dutch government to share details of the groundbreaking approach undertaken by North Carolina to create a new statewide business sector based on growing and processing non-corn feedstocks for biofuels.
Burke spearheaded the state's drive last year to establish the new Biofuels Center of North Carolina in Oxford. Funded with a $5 million initial appropriation from the 2007 General Assembly, the non-profit corporation's newly hired staff started work this week to implement the strategic plan mandated in 2006 by the General Assembly.
One of the key goals of the strategic plan is to have 10 percent of liquid fuels sold in North Carolina come from biofuels grown and produced within the state by 2017. At current usage rates, that translates to production of almost 600 million gallons.
Biodiesel Production
North Carolina now has a few small biodiesel producers, but no ethanol refineries have started production. The Biofuels Center focus is expected to target ethanol based on regionally appropriate cellulosic feedstocks such as wood waste, animal waste, sweet potatoes, switchgrass and potentially other enzyme-converted crops.
"We're discovering that we have a message that can be increasingly conveyed worldwide," said Burke. "It is that few states or places are as well equipped to develop biofuels leadership and capability as North Carolina.
"Our rich agricultural heritage and culture, unparalleled strengths in biotechnology, tradition in manufacturing and production, and unique ability to move policy to reality gives a toehold seen in few, if any, places."
Burke said he was asked to bring the North Carolina message to the 6thEuropean Motor BioFuels Forum here because the state's strategic plan "is seen as a sensible approach."
Other speakers include biofuels and policy experts from Austria,Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India,Luxembourg, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The Biotechnology Center is a private, non-profit corporation supported by the N.C. General Assembly. Its mission is to provide long-term economic and societal benefits to North Carolina by supporting biotechnology research, business and education statewide.
A complete copy of Fueling North Carolina's Future: North Carolina's Strategic Plan for Biofuels Leadership is available on the Web at http://tinyurl.com/389e99.