BIOMASS HUB

Researchers at Iowa State University announced last month that they have finally completed the first genetic mapping of the maize genome.  This is a huge breakthrough for the bruised US-based ethanol industry, which Greentech Media reports already receives about 75 percent of all Federal renewable energy subsidies despite lingering questions about its effectiveness as a viable antidote to Peak Oil and climate change.

Genetic mapping allows for many important breakthroughs for ethanol-derived biofuels and increased utilitization of corn stover biomass — chief among these, creating new corn variants that are more drought-tolerant and less vulnerable to variations in climate.

The breakthrough comes weeks before EPA’s decision earlier this week to extend its determination on whether to grant a waiver that would allow for the use of up to 15 percent of ethanol in gasoline.  While significant research is needed before genetically modified corn can sustainably increase US production, the completion of the genome mapping research will likely boost optimism about whether the country can meet Congress’ RFS mandate that refiners blend 15 billion gallons of biofuels into gasoline by 2012.

While the genome mapping and potential EPA waiver are positive developments for the ethanol industry, there are still many obstacles ahead.

First, the ethanol industry must overcome growing anxiety about the sustainability of corn-derived fuels. After the passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the absence of legal protection for MTBE, a groundwater contaminate found in gasoline blends, ethanol production increased dramatically in the US.  This led to a corresponding increase in food prices.  While the US ethanol industry suffered a severe backlash, it is recovering slowly despite concerns about the energy and water inputs necessary to produce corn-based biofuel products.  But if low carbon fuel standards, like the one passed in California earlier this year that takes into account indirect land use effects, are any indication of where regulation is moving, the ethanol industry will have an uphill battle.

Second, corn cannot compete competitively with other ethanol feedstocks without heavy subsidization, which may lead to trade wars and a limited market for US-produced ethanol. The US already provides significant subsidizes to the corn industry, offering 45 cents/gallon for US-produced ethanol and slaps a 54 cents/gallon import tariff on ethanol produced abroad.  The tariff is necessary to grow domestic ethanol production while limiting competition from sugarcane as well as other ethanol feedstocks used around the world that may offer more favorable environmental benefits.  The policy has direct benefits for corn producers at home, but may result in a backlash against US protectionism, which Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hinted at during a regional summit last April.

Third, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) raise anxiety about public health abroad and run into trade barriers. The US has long been a proponent of GMOs leading to clashes with the EU over trade policy.  The EU continues to regulate GMOs under the precautionary principle, largely in response to acute public anxiety about the downstream health risks associated with GMO food crops.  Whatever happens between the US and EU, GMOs have been a boon for US agricultural industry.  Since corn is heavily subsidized in the US, it is likely that support for genetically modified corn will grow, boosted by better understanding about the crop’s genome.

The promise of the Iowa State genome mapping research and the way forward for the corn industry will be towards reengineering the cellulosic composition of corn stalks to make the crop more amenable to chemical processes and technologies used to produce advanced biofuels.

For the complete research paper printed in Science, click here.

Image: Flickr/haglundc