USDA Announces Plan for $1.6 B Investment in Renewable Fuels

[jpak]

http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=47231


U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns plans to propose $1.6 billion in new funding for renewable energy, with a focus on cellulosic energy research and production, as part of the Administration's 2007 farm bill proposals.

This funding will support President Bush's goal of reducing gasoline usage by 20 percent in the next ten years and will complement an array of renewable energy-related efforts underway at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

In his State of the Union Address January 23, President Bush announced his vision for our nation's energy independence, including $2 billion in cellulosic production loan guarantees. The President's proposals also include a new Alternative Fuels Standard, which contains a requirement for sources produced by American farmers and ranchers as well as an automatic "safety valve" to protect against unforeseen increases in the prices of alternative fuels or their feedstocks.

"It remains a priority across USDA to support the development of biofuels. We will continue to build on current programs and turn the corner on renewable energy," said Johanns. "With biofuels coming to the forefront, American agriculture faces the greatest opportunity of a generation to lead a future in which we get our energy by the bushel and not by the barrel."

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[mitchleary]

1. A good start

Now when they get the 80+ billion oil and gas get.............................

I am also curious why there has not been a call to grow industrial hemp. It has much less of an impact and takes far fewer resources to grow and it can be used for so many things.

[kestrel91316]

2. They'll NEVER do that. Hemp's a "gateway drug", silly.

:mad:

[mitchleary]

5. Funny thing is

you would have to smoke a bale of industrial hemp to get high. It has a like.00003% of the thc. It looks different also. Farmers in South Dakota were just allowed to start growing it. We could make so much using ind hemp. Thanks William Randolph Heasrt, you making paper from trees bastard, and all you lobby money.

[JohnWxy]

4. Don't know anything about this idustrial Hemp. You should send emails to Senators

and Congressmen. Sometimes people just haven't heard of some things (include some web links to help out their staffers in researching it). www.congress.org makes it easy. You just type in your message and they send the email for you! (no charge)

Sounds like something that should be seriously investigated.

ONe factor in this equation is how efficiently the crop can be harvested (that usually means mechanically). IF there isn't a lot of this stuff grown it might require considerable effort in developing very efficient ways of growing and harvesting the crop.

Here are the members of the House Energy Committee-(you may not want to send emails to all but at least to the chairman)

John D. Dingell (MI), Chairman

Ratio: 31-26

Henry A. Waxman, CA             Joe Barton, TX, Ranking Member
Edward J. Markey, MA              Ralph M. Hall, TX
Rick Boucher, VA             J. Dennis Hastert, IL
Edolphus Towns, NY             Fred Upton, MI
Frank Pallone, Jr., NJ             Cliff Stearns, FL
Bart Gordon, TN             Nathan Deal, GA
Bobby L. Rush, IL             Ed Whitfield, KY
Anna G. Eshoo, CA             Charlie Norwood, GA
Bart Stupak, MI             Barbara Cubin, WY
Eliot L. Engel, NY             John Shimkus, IL
Albert R. Wynn, MD              Heather Wilson, NM
Gene Green, TX              John Shadegg, AZ
Diana DeGette, CO,

Vice Chair Charles W. "Chip" Pickering, MS

Lois Capps, CA              Vito Fossella, NY
Mike Doyle, PA             Steve Buyer, IN
Jane Harman, CA              George Radanovich, CA
Tom Allen, ME Joseph R. Pitts, PA
Jan Schakowsky, IL             Mary Bono, CA
Hilda L. Solis, CA             Greg Walden, OR
Charles A. Gonzalez, TX             Lee Terry, NE
Jay Inslee, WA              Mike Ferguson, NJ
Tammy Baldwin, WI             Mike Rogers, MI
Mike Ross, AR             Sue Myrick, NC
Darlene Hooley, OR             John Sullivan, OK
Anthony D. Weiner, NY             Tim Murphy, PA
Jim Matheson, UT              Michael C. Burgess, TX
G. K. Butterfield, NC
Charlie Melancon, LA
John Barrow, GA
Baron P. Hill, IN

[JohnWxy]

3. VEry good news. got to do more than just talk about it in the SOTU speech!