Biofuel Crop Sustainability brings together the basic principles of agricultural sustainability and special stipulations for biofuels, from the economic and ecological opportunities and challenges of sustainable biofuel crop production to the unique characteristics of particular crops which make them ideal for biofuel applications. This book will be a valuable resource for researchers and professionals involved in biofuels development and production as well as agriculture industry personnel. Chapters focus the broad principles of resource management for ecological, environmental and societal welfare, the sustainability issues pertaining to several broad categories of biofuel crops , as well as the economics and profitability of biofuels on both a local and international scale. Coverage includes topics such as utilizing waste water for field crop irrigation and algae production, reliability of feedstock supply, marginal lands, and identifying crops with traits of significance for survival and growth on low fertility soils. The development of production practices with low external inputs of fertilizer, irrigation, and pesticides is also covered. Biofuel Crop Sustainability will be a valuable, up-to-date reference for all those involved in the rapidly expanding biofuels industry and sustainable agriculture research fields.

Biofuel Crop Sustainability brings together the basic principles of agricultural sustainability and special stipulations for biofuels, from the economic and ecological opportunities and challenges of sustainable biofuel crop production to the unique characteristics of particular crops which make them ideal for biofuel applications. This book will be a valuable resource for researchers and professionals involved in biofuels development and production as well as agriculture industry personnel.Chapters focus the broad principles of resource management for ecological, environmental and societal welfare, the sustainability issues pertaining to several broad categories of biofuel crops , as well as the economics and profitability of biofuels on both a local and international scale. Coverage includes topics such as utilizing waste water for field crop irrigation and algae production, reliability of feedstock supply, marginal lands, and identifying crops with traits of significance for survival and growth on low fertility soils. The development of production practices with low external inputs of fertilizer, irrigation, and pesticides is also covered.Biofuel Crop Sustainability will be a valuable, up-to-date reference for all those involved in the rapidly expanding biofuels industry and sustainable agriculture research fields.

Contributors viiPreface xi1 Biofuel Crop Sustainability Paradigm 3B.P. Singh2 Sustainable Production of Grain Crops for Biofuels 31A.A. Jaradat3 Sugarcane as an Energy Crop: Its Role in Biomass Economy 53R. van Antwerpen, S.D. Berry, T. van Antwerpen, J. Smithers, S. Joshi, and M. van der Laan4 Sustainable Cellulosic Grass Crop Production 109J.H. Fike, D.J. Parrish, and W.B. Fike5 Sustainable Oil Crops Production 165C. Eynck, D. Shrestha, J. Vollmann, K.C. Falk, W. Friedt, H.P. Singh, and E. Obeng6 Short-rotation Woody Crop Biomass Production for Bioenergy 205L.C. Kiser and T.R. Fox7 Biomass Feedstock Production Impact on Water Resource Availability 239K.C. Stone, P.G. Hunt, K.B. Cantrell, and K.S. Ro8 Biofuel Crops and Soil Quality and Erosion 261D. Chatskikh, A. Ovchinnikova, B. Seshadri, and N. Bolan9 Nutrient Management in Biofuel Crop Production 301R. Lemus10 Food, Farming, and Biofuels 325J. Popp11 Biofuel Crops, Ecosystem Services, and Biodiversity 357A. Fieldsend and H.P. Singh12 Biofuel Crops and Greenhouse Gases 383A. Hastings, J. Yeluripati, J. Hillier, and P. Smith13 Economics of Biomass Feedstocks and Biofuels 407T.A. Maung, C. Gustafson, B. McCarl, D. Ripplinger, and D. Saxowsky14 Geospatial Modeling Applications for Biofuel Sustainability Assessment 431S.S. PandaAppendix I: Botanical Names 449Index 451