%0 Journal Article
%T The Impact of US Biofuels Policy on Agricultural Production and Nitrogen Loads in Alabama
%A Ermanno Affuso
%A Leah M. Duzy
%J Economics Research International
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/521254
%X The Energy Independence Security Act aims to increase the production of renewable fuels in order to improve the energy efficiency of the United States of America. This legislation set the biofuel production goal at 136.3 million m3 by 2022, with approximately 79 million m3 derived from advanced biofuels or renewable fuels other than corn ethanol. A bioeconomic model was used to assess the potential impact of the biofuel mandate in terms of nitrogen loss associated with corn production in northern Alabama considering the El Nino Southern Oscillation phases. From simulations conducted at the watershed level, the expansion in biofuel production would increase the production of corn by 122.89% with associated increase in nitrogen loss of 20%. Furthermore, nitrogen loss would be more severe in climatic transition towards La Nina. 1. Introduction In an attempt to develop clean energy substitutes for fossil fuels, bioenergy crops are becoming increasingly popular in the United States of America (US), with the ethanol industry using 114 million metric tons of corn to produce 50.41£żMm3 of ethanol in 2012 [1]. The National Biofuel Action Plan, based on the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) and Food and Conservation Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA), aims to replace or reduce fossil fuel through the production of 136.3£żMm3 of renewable fuels by 2022. As bioenergy crops are gaining importance, their efficiency and environmental impact are becoming an issue. The impact of bioenergy crops on land-use change plays a significant role in choosing between different crops. A major requirement of the EISA is to forecast the environmental impact of production of biofuels. Searchinger et al. [2] estimated that the land use change for corn-based ethanol production would double the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over 30 years rather than reduce it, as estimated by previous studies [3, 4]. As the demand for ethanol increases, there would be an economically driven conversion of land in soybean and wheat to corn. Soils and plant biomass are the largest natural sources of carbon, containing almost 2.7 times the carbon content of the atmosphere. Conversion of rainforests, peatlands, savannas, and grasslands would release CO2 as a result of microbiological processes due to the decomposition of organic carbon naturally stored in plant biomass and soils [5]. Studies by Al-Riffai et al. [3], Dumortier et al. [4], Melillo et al. [6], and Plevin et al. [7] address the potential environmental impact of the biofuel expansion in terms of carbon emissions derived by indirect land
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecri/2013/521254/