INSIDE RURAL DEVELOPMENT
USDA working with nonprofit
to boost bioenergy in Arkansas
By Jack Gleason,
Acting Administrator
USDA Rural Development
Business-Cooperative Programs
SDA Rural Development
offices across the nation
are working with cooperatives,
individuals, partnerships
and corporations
to help promote the development of the
nation’s rapidly emerging bio-fuel economy.
This is without doubt the most
exciting and promising economic development
for rural America since the
arrival of electricity on the farm.
We are also working with nonprofit
organizations to promote
renewable energy, a prime example
being Winrock International.
Winrock works with people in the
United States and around the
world to increase economic opportunity,
sustain natural resources and protect
the environment. It matches innovative
approaches in agriculture, natural
resources management, clean energy
and leadership development with the
unique needs of its partners.
Its U.S. programs bring global
expertise home to benefit Arkansas, the
Mid-South and the United States.
In 2004, through a grant from
USDA Rural Development under our
Rural Business Opportunities Grant
program, Winrock conducted a feasibility
study for establishing biodiesel production
in Arkansas. Since the study
was completed, one biodiesel production
facility has been constructed and is
operational. A second facility is under
construction and plans are under way to
build more.
Winrock recently hosted a tour of
facilities in Eastern Arkansas for staff
members from USDA Rural Development’s
state office for Arkansas and
myself that was very enlightening. The
tour included a presentation from the
Eastman Chemical facility in Batesville
and site visits to England Dryer, a soybean
oil extrusion facility; Patriot Fuels,
a small biorefinery in Stuttgart; and the
Potlatch pulp mill in Cypress Bend.
These value-added activities have been
made possible in part by strategic
investments from USDA Rural
Development.
Opportunity to prosper
The emerging bioenergy industry
offers a unique opportunity for
Arkansas. The potential for large-scale
production of biofuels and bioenergy
from cellulosic residues and dedicated
energy crops is enormous, particularly
in the Delta region. Achieving this
potential would enhance the sustainability
of the state’s agricultural sector,
create thousands of new processing jobs
and result in numerous environmental
benefits while helping to reduce our
nation’s reliance on imported energy.
Arkansas’ potential for producing
biofuels and bioenergy from cellulosic
materials is substantial. In addition to
forestry and agricultural residues,
Arkansas has the potential to redirect
more than 2 million acres of farmland
into production of dedicated energy
crops, making Arkansas a world leader
in renewable energy.
Dedicated energy crops have
the potential to transform the Delta
region. Farm profits could be higher
than from traditional crops and
long-term biomass supply contracts
could reduce market risks for local
farmers. Renewable energy production
from dedicated cellulosic biomass has
numerous environmental benefits. For
every pound of carbon dioxide generated
during production and consumption of
biofuels or bioenergy products, an equal
amount is removed from the atmosphere
during the plant’s growth cycle.
Equally important, production of
perennial cellulosic energy crops would
use topsoil-conserving, no-till agricultural
practices.
Winrock’s goals are to facilitate private
sector production of and public
sector support for bioenergy and to
help Arkansas become a world leader in
bioenergy production. USDA Rural
Development is proud to provide its
support for this effort.
