11/30/07 Fueling Oregon

Fueling Oregon. I'm Greg Martin as Line On Agriculture presents the Harvest Clean Energy Report. Oregon has taken a green posture with new standards being required by Governor Kulongoski for the future. Recently a new report has been released attempting to map pathways to sustainable biofuels according to Chris Hagerbaumer from the Oregon Environmental Council. HAGERBAUMER: The Oregon Environmental Council has worked for several years to promote the development of the biofuels industry in Oregon. But as we have gone along we have recognized there are ways you can do it that are more sustainable and there are ways that you can develop the industry that are less sustainable or are less desirable from an environmental and social standpoint. Hagerbaumer say the report is really a guidebook for producers. HAGERBAUMER: We put this report together to really provide guidelines to the folks who are in the industry about how to develop it in a way that's going to help our environment the most, help our economy the most and just provide a frame work for folks to understand the way this industry could develop in Oregon and in the broader Pacific Northwest. One of the critical areas of creating biofuels is what is used to power the actual plants. If coal or other fossil fuel is used then that created a negative impact. Generating renewable fuels, using renewables is the goal. Also being able to use more of the raw materials is extremely important. HAGERBAUMER: Ultimately we want to get to what are called second generation biofuels that are biofuels that are produced out of cellulosic material where you can take say the entire plant and turn it into a biofuel and usually it's a plant that's not in competition for food. Another area that is being looked at as a cellulosic source is a bit unusual according to Hagerbaumer. HAGERBAUMER: With biodiesel there's a first generation biodiesel where you take waste grease and turn it into biodiesel and that's fantastic. In the long term folks would like to be able to produce biodiesel out of algae which can basically be grown in unlimited quantities. This report basically outlines the pros and cons of these different types of methods. To view the complete report visit www.oeconline.org. For additional information on clean energy, visit harvestcleanenergy.org. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.