Center for Advanced BioEnergy Research, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Biomass conference addresses farming community's role in industry

Biomass Power & Thermal
By Erin Voegele May 04, 2011

The farming community is an integral part of the biorefining and biomass heat and power industries. However, it’s contribution to the growth of the industry can—at times—be overshadowed by the massive amount of attention paid to research, development and scale-up activities. Attendees as the 2011 International Biomass Conference & Expo in St. Louis had the opportunity to learn more about the farming community’s perspective of the biomass industry during a panel titled Enlisting Farmers in the Profitable Production of Biomass Supply Chains.

Daniel Simon, a partner in Ballard Spahr LLP’s Energy and Project Finance Group, opened the panel with a historical overview of the Biomass Crop Assistance Program. Although the program initially faced a variety of implementation issues, the USDA is forging ahead.

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