Could We Power Flights With Human Waste?💩

By Felicity Bradstock - Apr 21, 2024, 

• Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) derived from human waste is being explored as a promising alternative to fossil fuels for powering flights.
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• Governments worldwide are pushing for greener aviation practices, with targets set for SAF adoption and emissions reduction in the aviation sector.
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• Companies like Wizz Air and Firefly are investing in projects to convert sewage into SAF, aiming to capitalize on abundant feedstock and reduce carbon emissions in the aviation industry.

Aviation companies worldwide have increasingly been investing in research and development into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to help decarbonise their flights. The aviation sector is considered a hard-to-abate industry, as there is no clear alternative to fossil fuels that can be used to power commercial flight. And yet, governments worldwide are putting increasing pressure on companies to make their operations greener. The most promising fossil fuel alternative to date is SAF, which many airlines are now mixing with conventional fuels to reduce emissions. Recently, Wizz Air and Firefly announced that they intend to use human waste to produce jet fuel for future flights through an innovative project in the U.K.

SAF is a biofuel that can be used to power aircraft. It has similar properties to conventional jet fuel but produces far fewer greenhouse gas emissions. A wide variety of feedstock can be used to produce SAF, from food waste to excess crops. Using agricultural waste can provide farmers with extra income while using leftover food can help reduce waste. In the U.S. alone, an estimated one billion dry tonnes of biomass can be collected sustainably each year, which is enough to produce between 50 and 60 billion gallons of SAF. According to the International Civil Aviation Organisation, 120 airports around the globe are distributing SAF; 40 SAF policies have been adopted or are under development; and 42 feedstocks have been recognised for the production of SAF. 

Several countries are rapidly expanding their biofuel production to support the development of SAF, as well as other low-carbon products, such as fertiliser and biodiesel. The demand for these fuels has grown exponentially in recent years as governments put increasing pressure on companies to decarbonise their operations, particularly in hard-to-abate sectors, such as industry and transport. The demand for biofuel rose to 4.3 exajoules (EJ) in 2022, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. To meet net-zero emissions aims by 2050, the global production of biofuel needs to increase to 10 EJ by 2030, requiring an average growth of around 11 percent per year, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). 

In Europe, the EU has stated that by 2035 SAF must contribute at least 20 percent of the fuel used in aircraft. Meanwhile, the U.K. is expected to soon announce a 10 percent minimum SAF mix starting in 2030. The International Air Transport Association aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and it expects SAF to contribute to 65 percent of emissions reductions in the industry. This will be supported by new technology, such as electric and hydrogen, contributing 13 percent, improved infrastructure and operational efficiencies, (3 percent) and offsets and carbon capture (19 percent). 

Recently, the low-cost, Hungarian airline Wizz Air and the British sustainable aviation company Firefly announced they are planning to use human waste to produce SAF in the coming years. The two companies intend to build a commercial refinery in Essex to convert treated sewage into SAF. Wizz is investing in the project by placing an order for up to 525,000 tonnes of Firefly’s human waste-derived SAF over the next 15 years, which could be worth hundreds of millions of pounds. 

The potential use of human waste is highly appealing to biofuel producers as it could provide abundant feedstock for low-carbon fuel production. There is a limited supply of food and agricultural waste, and acquiring these feedstocks can be costly. In contrast, converted sewage is expected to be cheaper and more abundant. Firefly’s COO, Paul Hilditch, believes it could provide up to five percent of the fuel demand of U.K. airlines. 

Firefly has already produced small test quantities of SAF that Hilditch said were “chemically indistinguishable” from jet fuel. However, the fuel is still undergoing regulatory testing and the firm needs significantly more funding to develop a full-scale factory for production. James Hygate, Firefly’s CEO, hopes the company will be able to deliver commercial supplies of SAF by 2028 or 2029, with the first facility in Harwich serving London airports. Hygate stated, “We’re turning sewage into jet fuel, and I can’t think of many things that are cooler than that.” 

At present, much of the biosolids in the U.K. are used for muck spreading on farmland, around 87 percent. Several companies in the biofuel industry are competing for agreements with utility companies to use their waste for fuel production, for a range of applications. While environmentalists believe that waste-to-jet fuel may not be the best use of sewage, those in the industry see it as a sustainable production option, as they will be using unavoidable waste to make something valuable. Further, residue from the sewage-to-fuel process could still be used to improve soil. While the U.K. uses its sewage to support other industries, many countries incinerate their human waste, which demonstrates the huge potential for converting waste into other products of value. 

By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com

 

ONE Joins Trend Towards Optional Low-Carbon Container Fees

File image courtesy ONE

PUBLISHED APR 17, 2024 7:27 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

Japanese ocean carrier ONE has added a low-carbon option for shippers who are willing to spend to reduce their emissions. Rather than selling carbon offsets for tree planting or conservation, the company is offering its customers the opportunity to pay for biofuel for the carrier's fleet, in an amount equivalent to the energy needed to move the shipment. 

ONE is buying regulation-compliant biofuels for a number of its ships, and customers can reduce their Scope 3 (supply chain) emissions by paying for the fuel. Customers receive a certification of the CO2-equivalent savings, independently verified to ensure compliance. ClassNK has validated the process and methodology behind the credits. 

The fuel product is a second-generation biofuel made from used cooking oil, which reduces well-to-wake emissions by more than 80 percent when compared to VLSFO. It meets the EU's definition of a waste stream, and does not require human food for production (like virgin soy-based biofuels). 

"We are fully committed to our target in achieving net-zero GHG emissions by 2050," said Gilberto Santos, Senior Vice President, Global Commercial Service Management at ONE. "The launch of ONE LEAF+ underscores our commitment to sustainability and provides our customers with the tools and transparency they need."

Like many carriers, ONE aims to meet the IMO target of net-zero emissions by 2050, and views the opt-in policy for low-carbon biofuel as a step towards that goal. Other carriers offer similar programs or partnerships: UECC has piloted biofuel voyages with BMW, Maersk Supply Service offers optional biofuel credits for the offshore sector, and MSC, Maersk, and Hapag all offer an optional service for customers to buy low-carbon fuel. With Maersk's recent dual-fuel vessel investments, its ECO Delivery option now includes methanol-fueled shipping in addition to biofuel. 

ALTERNATE FUEL

Viking Line Sees Improved Supplies of Bio-LNG on the Market

Viking Grace (Courtesy Viking)

PUBLISHED APR 14, 2024 11:18 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

Finnish ro/pax operator Viking Line began offering passengers the opportunity to pay for bio-LNG on its voyages last year, and the possibilities for using this sustainable fuel have been growing, the company reported last week. 

"We made sure that Viking Glory, which was completed in 2021, and Viking Grace, which was completed in 2013, were built with the technological readiness to use biogas and synthetic fuels produced from renewable energy," said Viking Line’s Sustainability Manager, Dani Lindberg. "There is now enough biogas being produced in the market so that we can start to use this fuel together with liquefied natural gas for these two climate-smart vessels."

Under Viking's low-carbon pricing program, passengers on the Turku route are offered the option of buying biofuel to cover their journey. This adds a manageable fee of up to €5 in addition to the fare, which ranges between €45-55. The price is based on the typical fuel usage per passenger, and effectively reduces the passenger’s carbon footprint by up to 90 percent. The two passenger ferries make two sailings each day on the same route, and the voyage takes eight to 12 hours depending on the vessel. 

Last year, Lindberg said that the local supply of bio-LNG was limited, constraining the amount that Viking could access. Subsidies may be required to expand production, according to the International Council on Clean Transportion (ICCT); with the right policies, 98 billion cubic meters (bcm) of biomethane could be produced in Europe by 2050, according to an industry-backed study for Gas for Climate. This would be enough to replace about 30 percent of current European demand for pipeline gas. 

Viking also uses electricity from renewable energy at all of the ports where it uses shore power, which reduces the company’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by about 780 tonnes. Last year it also sold its largest and most emissions-intensive vessel, the M/S Rosella. 

For the second time, Viking Line was named the most sustainable company in maritime transport service between Finland and Sweden last year, based on a passenger survey.

Methanol-Fuelled MAN 21/31DF-M GenSet Secures First Propulsion Order

Three MAN 21/31DF-M units are bound for a chemical tanker

PUBLISHED APR 15, 2024 9:38 AM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

[By: MAN Energy Solutions]

MAN Energy Solutions has received an order for 3 × MAN 6L21/31DF-M (Dual Fuel-Methanol) GenSets capable of running on methanol in connection with the construction of a 7,990 dwt IMO Type II chemical bunker tanker.

The dual-fuel engines will form part of a diesel-electric propulsion system on board the vessel with electrical motors driving twin fixed-pitch propellers via gearboxes; an onboard battery-storage system will optimise the use of the dual-fuelled generators. MAN Energy Solutions’ licensee, CMP – an engine-manufacturing division of Chinese State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) – will build the engines in China and the vessel is scheduled for delivery during Q4, 2025.

The newbuild will operate at the port of Singapore under charter to deliver marine fuels. The port itself is reported as laying plans for the steady supply of methanol from 2025 onwards in order to meet future, anticipated bunkering requirements for methanol-fuelled vessels. 

Bjarne Foldager – Country Manager, Denmark – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “Seeing our trusted MAN L21/31 GenSets go into these ships as a methanol-fuelled version shows that maritime decarbonisation is a prominent consideration for shipowners in all vessel segments and sizes. It also clearly illustrates, regardless of the market one serves as shipowner, that our broad, dual-fuel portfolio enables everyone to take part in the green transition.”

Thomas S. Hansen – Head of Sales and Promotion – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “The MAN L21/31 engine is well-established in the market having racked up some 2,750 sales. The reliability of its cost-effective, port fuel-injection concept now prominently positions the 21/31DF-M as the preferred, medium-speed, small-bore engine for GenSet and diesel-electric propulsion solutions, while also meeting market demands to balance both CAPEX and OPEX. With the shipping market currently experiencing an increased interest in methanol as marine fuel, and orders for methanol-fuelled ships steadily growing as part of many companies’ decarbonisation strategy, we feel that the introduction of this dual-fuel engine is timely.”

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

 

Using CO2 and biomass, FAMU-FSU researchers find path to more environmentally friendly recyclable plastics

FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: 

FROM LEFT, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR HOYONG CHUNG AND POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER ARIJIT GHORAI DISPLAY THE TWO PHASES OF THEIR DEGRADABLE POLYMER AT THE DITTMER CHEMISTRY LAB AT FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY.

view more 

CREDIT: SCOTT HOLSTEIN/FAMU-FSU COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Modern life relies on plastic. This lightweight, adaptable product is a cornerstone of packaging, medical equipment, the aerospace and automotive industries and more. But plastic waste remains a problem as it degrades in landfills and pollutes oceans.

FAMU-FSU College of Engineering researchers have created a potential alternative to traditional petroleum-based plastic that is made from carbon dioxide (CO2) and lignin, a component of wood that is a low-cost byproduct of paper manufacturing and biofuel production. Their research was published in Advanced Functional Materials.

“Our study takes the harmful greenhouse gas CO2 and makes it into a useful raw material to produce degradable polymers or plastics,” said Hoyong Chung, an associate professor in chemical and biomedical engineering at the college. “We are not only reducing CO2 emissions, but we are producing a sustainable polymer product using the CO2.”

This study is the first to demonstrate the direct synthesis of what’s known as a cyclic carbonate monomer — a molecule made of carbon and oxygen atoms that can be linked with other molecules — made from CO2 and lignin.

By linking multiple monomers together, scientists can create synthetic polymers, long-chained molecules that can be designed to fill all manner of applications.

The material developed by Chung and his research team is fully degradable at the end of its life without producing microplastics and toxic substances. It can be synthesized at lower pressures and temperatures. And the polymer can be recycled without losing its original properties.

Using depolymerization, the researchers can convert polymers to pure monomers, which are the building blocks of polymers. This is the key to the high quality of the recycled material. The monomers can be recycled indefinitely and produce a high-quality polymer as good as the original, an improvement over previously developed and currently used polymer materials in which repeated heat exposure from melting reduces quality and allows for limited recycling.

“We can readily degrade the polymer via depolymerization, and the degraded product can synthesize the same polymer again,” Chung said. “This is more cost effective and keeps it from losing original properties of polymers over multiple recycling. This is considered a breakthrough in material science, as it enables the realization of a true circular economy.”

The newly developed material could be used for low-cost, short lifespan plastic products in such sectors as construction, agriculture, packaging, cosmetics, textiles, diapers and disposable kitchenware. With further development, Chung anticipates its use in highly specialized polymers for biomedical and energy storage applications.

The FSU Office of Commercialization provided valuable foundational support for Chung’s research. Support from an internal funding program helped previous work with lignin-based polymers, and with the help of the office, he has received patents for other polymer research.

The project was supported by federal funds awarded to the State of Florida from the United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and support from the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering. Postdoctoral researcher Arijit Ghorai was the lead author of the study.

A closer view of the polymer developed by Chung’s research team in monomer and polymer phases.

CREDIT

Scott Holstein/FAMU-FSU College of Engineering

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JOURNAL

Advanced Functional Materials

DOI

10.1002/adfm.202403035 

ARTICLE TITLE

CO2 and Lignin-Based Sustainable Polymers with Closed-Loop Chemical Recycling

 

Food security in developed countries shows resilience to climate change

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON

A study by the University of Southampton has found that market forces have provided good food price stability over the past half century, despite extreme weather conditions.

Research into US wheat commodities by economists at Southampton, in collaboration with UCL, also suggests high uncertainty about the state of future harvests hasn’t destabilised the market.

Findings are published in the Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control.

Wheat is an important crop in the United States used for food production. A small fraction becomes animal feed and the crop isn’t used to generate biofuel. The main buyers of wheat are flour mills, food processors, and direct consumers.

The researchers analysed data on American wheat production, inventories, crop area, prices and wider market conditions from 1950 to 2018, together with records of annual fluctuations in the weather for the same period. This showed strong evidence of an increase in weather and harvest variability from 1974 onwards.

“Before the mid-70s, oil was the dominant driver of wheat price fluctuations in the US, but after this point we see a much stronger influence coming from a wider set of factors that includes weather and food consumption,” explains lead author Dr Vincenzo De Lipsis of the University of Southampton.

“Extreme weather events, such as droughts and floods, are becoming more frequent and intense across the world due to climate change. Understanding the impact of this variability on food commodity prices is crucial, as it could have serious implications for food security.”

The authors found that in the US the market system around wheat has remained competitive, functioning well and adapting to the new uncertain climate conditions. The potential for weather fluctuations to adversely affect wheat prices has increased, but in reality this hasn’t been passed on to the market. Wheat prices remain relatively stable, along with the price of associated goods.

The researchers found that this is mainly due to farmers and agricultural industries providing a buffer, smoothing out any bumps in the supply of grain to retailers and consumers, thus reducing shocks to the market that poor harvests may cause. This has been achieved by investment in substantial storage facilities, modern infrastructure and good transport links.

According to the study, the US wheat sector has demonstrated remarkable resilience and flexibility in adapting to the ever-increasing unpredictability of the climate and harvest by modifying its inventory management. At the same time, there is no indication that the wheat market is vulnerable to excessive volatility from the related financial futures market, which can often emerge in commodity markets in response to increased uncertainty regarding future production capacity.

Commenting on what policymakers can take from the research, Dr De Lipsis says: “We have shown that market forces provide a powerful stabilising mechanism to counter the increased variability in weather and harvest observed in the last half a century.

“The market mechanism is one of the most effective instruments that governments have available for climate change adaptation and food security. But for this to work effectively, we need a combination of factors in place: a well-functioning competitive commodity market, a modern infrastructure with extensive transport networks, sufficient food storage capacity and a liquid futures market.

“However, while the system in the US continues to be robust, it’s hard to predict if storage mechanisms will work equally well if faced with unprecedented levels of weather variability – the kind of extreme events that can potentially disrupt the transport network and the very infrastructure on which it is based.”

The authors acknowledge that stability is easier to achieve in developed and more affluent countries, but say that their results underscore the need to prioritise investment in these key areas in developing regions to ensure a reliable and secure food supply in the future.

Ends
 

Notes to Editors

1. The paper ‘Climate change and the US wheat commodity market’ is published in the Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jedc.2024.104823
    
2. For interviews please contact, Peter Franklin, Media Relations, University of Southampton. +44 2380 59 3212 press@soton.ac.uk
    
3. For more about the School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences at the University of Southampton visit: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/about/faculties-schools-departments/economic-social-and-political-sciences
    
4. The University of Southampton drives original thinking, turns knowledge into action and impact, and creates solutions to the world’s challenges. We are among the top 100 institutions globally (QS World University Rankings 2024). Our academics are leaders in their fields, forging links with high-profile international businesses and organisations, and inspiring a 22,000-strong community of exceptional students, from over 135 countries worldwide. Through our high-quality education, the University helps students on a journey of discovery to realise their potential and join our global network of over 200,000 alumni. www.southampton.ac.uk

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JOURNAL

Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control

DOI

10.1016/j.jedc.2024.104823 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Climate change and the US wheat commodity market

US bets on climate friendly farming; experts doubt it is climate friendly enough

Leah Douglas
Thu, April 11, 2024 

FILE PHOTO: Farm workers plant Novavine drought-resistant grapevines in Woodland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Joe Biden's administration is offering farmers money for adopting practices that store carbon in the soil to fight climate change, but Reuters interviews with soil science experts and a review of U.S. Department of Agriculture research indicate doubt that the approach will be effective.

Farm practices like planting cover crops and reducing farmland tilling are key to the USDA's plan for slashing agriculture's 10% contribution to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions as the U.S. pursues net-zero by 2050. Ethanol producers also hope those practices will help them secure lucrative tax credits for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) passed in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

But the farming techniques, which will receive an extra funding boost from Biden's signature climate law, may not permanently sequester much atmospheric carbon in the soil, according to five soil scientists and researchers who spoke to Reuters about the current science.


Four other soil scientists, and the USDA, said the practices can store various amounts of soil carbon, but circumstances will dictate how much and for how long.

The White House referred Reuters to the USDA for comment.

A USDA spokesperson said "the adoption and persistent use of no-till and cover crops are key for the sequestration of carbon on working croplands."

All the experts interviewed by Reuters agreed that no-till and cover crops can have significant environmental benefits such as preventing soil erosion and increasing biodiversity. Yet five of them expressed skepticism about tying climate policy and public money to the practices.

"Will it help with climate adaptation? Absolutely. Should it serve as an offset for more permanent and long-lived pollutants? Absolutely not," said Daniel Rath, an agricultural soil carbon scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

The USDA has spent $1.3 billion in financial assistance to farmers for planting and managing cover crops and $224 million for implementing no-or reduced-till since 2014, according to agency data. That figure is miniscule compared to total USDA spending, but does amount to about 8% of its farm conservation spending in that period.

"If we really want to offset or mitigate climate change, we need to think about different systems," said Humberto Blanco, an agronomy professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "We need to think about more aggressive strategies."

IT ALL DEPENDS

Adoption of cover crops and no-till has risen in the past decade; now, 11% of farms plant cover crops and about 40% use minimal or no tilling, according to the most recent USDA agricultural census.

Under the right conditions, planting cover crops and reducing tilling can be positive for the climate, scientists told Reuters.

"If a farmer is using cover crops and getting good growth in the fall and spring, and they’re doing minimal tillage, on most soils, they’re going to add soil carbon over time," said Robert Myers, a professor at the University of Missouri and regional director of extension programs at a USDA research site.

A USDA spokesperson said the benefits largely depend on factors like growing climate, soil type, crop rotation, and other factors.

Five other experts told Reuters that no-till farming commonly results in a higher concentration of carbon in the soil surface but a decrease deeper in the soil profile, resulting in a net zero gain.

Seven experts said the climate benefits of no-till and cover crop techniques can be lessened or reversed if farmers plow their fields again.

"Even if you do build up some extra carbon under reduced tillage, if you then do a traditional plowing, the evidence seems to be that you quite quickly lose the carbon that you’ve been building up," said David Powlson, senior fellow at Rothamsted Research, an agricultural research institution.

Only 21% of farmers report using no-till continuously, according to the 2022 farm census, and about a third alternate reduced tilling with conventional tilling, showed a 2018 USDA report.

A USDA standards document for no-till says loss of carbon in the soil is directly tied to the amount and intensity of the tilling, and other factors like soil moisture and temperature.

As for the SAF tax credit, the Treasury Department is expected to finalize details in coming weeks. The $1.25 per gallon credit is aimed at producers who prove their fuel can cut emissions 50% from those of straight jet fuel.

The program will likely require ethanol producers to source corn from farmers using cover crops, reduced tilling, or efficient fertilizer application, sources told Reuters.

The USDA declined to comment on what the fertilizer application would entail.

The ethanol industry hopes to account for a significant portion of the 35 billion gallons of SAF the Biden administration has pledged to produce by 2050.

The IRA includes some $19.5 billion for farm climate programs over 10 years, and in 2023, about $52.5 million of that money went to cover crops and no-till.

(Reporting by Leah Douglas; Editing by David Gregorio)

US Betting on Energy Shift to Stem Decades of Disappearing Farms

Kim Chipman, Michael Hirtzer and Tarso Veloso
Thu, April 11, 2024 



(Bloomberg) -- The US is betting the transition to cleaner energy combined with massive infrastructure investments will reverse a persistent decline in family farms, creating new revenue opportunities for growers while boosting their ability to compete overseas.

More than half a million farms across America’s landscape have vanished over the last four decades as policies favored consolidation. While the resulting industrial heft has bolstered the US’s status as an agriculture juggernaut feeding the world, it’s wreaked havoc on smaller and mid-sized producers and the rural economies that rely on them.

But a revival is under way, according to US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “We have to change the direction, otherwise in 40 years we will be saying we lost another 500 million acres,” he said in an interview Tuesday at Bloomberg’s Chicago office.

His agency is devoting tens of billions of dollars to promote climate-friendly farm practices as the world races to decarbonize, dealing with everything from fertilizers to grazing methods. The aim is to lower the greenhouse gas emissions of farming, and making growers eligible to take part in potentially lucrative new markets like crop-based sustainable aviation fuel.

Initiatives include enabling farms to profit by monetizing their excess renewable electricity, as well as helping them tap into new markets to sell into, including schools and farmer markets. The USDA also is devoting funds to create more robust export opportunities for US producers in regions such as Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America.

Read More: Number of Farms in America Is Shrinking as Producers Get Older

“This is allowing farmers to say to the next generation: ‘You can be entrepreneurial and make a difference in the world,’” he said.

The opportunity to profit from selling more into local and regional food systems is significant. While farmers may get around 15-21 cents of a dollar spent at the grocery store, they can get as much as 75 cents at a farmers market or other venues in which growers work directly with consumers, Vilsack said.

Yet uncertainty is hanging over whether US farmers can shrink their carbon footprint fast enough to be competitive with grains and oilseeds from other nations, as well as with other pathways for making high-value products like sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF.

In January, the world’s first plant using ethanol of all types to make SAF was unveiled in Georgia. A thousand miles north in Iowa, the country’s biggest producer of corn-based ethanol, farmers and biofuel makers said the opening was a wake-up call to move faster to decarbonize to compete with ethanol from Brazil.

Vilsack, a former Democratic governor of Iowa, predicts a “rapid acceleration” in crop-based SAF investment after the Biden administration releases long-awaited details on federal tax credits aimed at setting off a surge in American production of lower-emitting airplane fuel. The update of a US tool used to calculate greenhouse gases from the transportation and energy industries is expected within a few weeks, Vilsack said.

While the government’s strategy is focused on strengthening the small farmer and rural communities, Vilsack expects the administration’s policies to also bolster the US’s position in world markets. America over the past decade lost its status as the top global shipper of corn and soybeans to Brazil.

Once the US fixes its roads and bridges, and the rail and port systems work more efficiently, America will be able to reclaim its infrastructure advantage, he said. President Joe Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure law, passed in 2021, will “change the game on exports,” Vilsack said.

While he declined to comment directly on this year’s elections, Vilsack said he sees little risk in a new administration coming in and possibly rolling back efforts to help rural America, as the shift toward clean energy will be hard to stop.

He said farmers 10 years ago would have said “no thank you” to climate-smart programs, but now farm groups and growers are increasingly understanding the benefits.

Changing Mindset

“It’s an unlimited entrepreneurial opportunity to get out of the ‘Get Big or Get Out’ mindset,” he said. The phrase is a reference to the mantra of Earl Butz, agriculture chief under presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, which was also taken up by President Donald Trump’s farm chief Sonny Perdue.

“Now the rest can get entrepreneurial,” Vilsack said. “They can have two or three income streams and may not have to work that second job.”

Vilsack, who also served as agriculture chief under Barack Obama and is the second-longest serving USDA secretary in US history, said his approach is not about taking on crop-handling behemoths like Cargill Inc. and Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.

“This is about saying we ought to be able to create more options, and then the farmer can make the decision about what is best for his or her operation,” he said. “That’s the beauty of this — it complements, it doesn’t compete.”

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

 

Hapag-Lloyd Carries Out Largest Bio-LNG Bunkering Yet

Image courtesy Titan Clean Fuels

PUBLISHED APR 9, 2024 9:26 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

Hapag-Lloyd has become the latest liner to try bio-LNG as a marine fuel. In the largest ship-to-ship bio-LNG bunkering operation yet, STX Group and Titan Clean Fuels supplied 2,200 tonnes of the alternative fuel for Hapag-Lloyd’s Brussels Express at Port of Rotterdam.

Bio-LNG used in the maritime industry is produced from biomass feedstocks like human or agricultural waste, which means it does not compete with the production of food, fiber, or fodder (like many traditional biofuels do). Bio-LNG can have net-zero or even net-negative GHG emissions on a lifecycle basis depending on the method of production, according to Titan. 

Built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2014, the Brussels Express became the first large container ship in the world to be converted to LNG propulsion in September 2020. The retrofit, carried out at the Huarun Dadong Dockyard in Shanghai, cost $35 million.

Bunkering of bio-LNG on Brussels Express is part of Hapag-Lloyd’s plan to offer climate-friendly transport services. The line plans to go fully carbon neutral by 2045, and it says that it is on its way. The company reduced the GHG emissions of its fleet by 0.8 million tons in 2023 compared to the previous year, thanks in part to a significant increase in the amount of bunkered biofuel blend (over 200,000 tons).  

Jan Christensen, Hapag-Lloyd Senior Director Fuel Purchasing, said that although bunkering large quantities of bio-LNG is possible and scalable, there is still more progress required regarding the necessary infrastructure and the regulations. 

Titan is currently building the world’s largest bio-LNG plant at the port of Amsterdam, which will have a capacity to produce 200,000 tons annually when completed. The independent supplier recently chartered Alice Cosulich, increasing its bunkering fleet to three.

 

Biofuels could help island nations survive a global catastrophe, study suggests

SOCIETY FOR RISK ANALYSIS

A major global catastrophe could disrupt trade in liquid fuels used to sustain industrial agriculture, impacting the food supply of island nations like New Zealand that depend on oil imports.

A new study in the journal Risk Analysis suggests that New Zealand and other island nations dependent on imported fuel can plan for future emergencies by stepping up their production of biofuel from locally grown crops (like canola) and farming more fuel-efficient crops (like wheat and potatoes rather than dairy).

In the event of a major disruption in liquid fuel imports, results showed that New Zealand would run out of its stored diesel within weeks (with ordinary use) or months (with strict rationing). Investment in canola biodiesel or renewable diesel refineries could ensure a supply for the country’s bare minimum agricultural liquid fuel needs. In addition, fuel could be conserved by farming wheat or potatoes instead of more energy-intensive dairy.
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About SRA  

The Society for Risk Analysis is a multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, scholarly, international society that provides an open forum for all those interested in risk analysis. SRA was established in 1980. Since 1982, it has continuously published Risk Analysis: An International Journal, the leading scholarly journal in the field. For more information, visit www.sra.org. 

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JOURNAL

Risk Analysis

DOI

10.1111/risa.14297 

ARTICLE TITLE

Mitigating imported fuel dependency in agricultural production: Case study of an island nation's vulnerability to global catastrophic risks

 

Novel method to measure root depth may lead to more resilient crops

New approach could lead to faster breeding of plants better able to withstand drought, acquire nitrogen and store carbon deeper in soil

PENN STATE

 

IMAGE: 

ALTHOUGH THIS METHOD OF IDENTIFYING DEEP-ROOTING PLANTS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH CORN, SHOWN HERE ON A CLOUDY SUMMER MORNING GROWING AT PENN STATE'S RUSSELL E. LARSON AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH CENTER, IT CAN BE USED WITH ALL PLANTS, THE RESEARCHERS SAID. 

view more 

CREDIT: PENN STATE

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As climate change worsens global drought conditions, hindering crop production, the search for ways to capture and store atmospheric carbon causing the phenomenon has intensified. Penn State researchers have developed a new high-tech tool that could spur changes in how crops withstand drought, acquire nitrogen and store carbon deeper in soil.

In findings published in the January issue of Crop Science, they describe a process in which the depth of plant roots can be accurately estimated by scanning leaves with X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, a process that detects chemical elements in the foliage. The method recognizes that roots take up elements they encounter, depending on the depth they reach, and a correlation exists between chemical elements in the leaves and root depth.

The new technology is the subject of a provisional patent application by Penn State, because it promises to speed up the plant-breeding process, according to research team leader Jonathan Lynch, distinguished professor of plant science in the College of Agricultural Sciences. The ability to measure the depth of plant roots without excavating them is a game-changing technology, he said.

“We've known about the benefits of deeper rooting crops for a long time — they are more drought tolerant and have an enhanced ability to take up nitrogen, which tends to move deep with water — but the problem has been how to measure root depth in the field,” he said. “To breed deeper-rooted crops, you need to look at thousands of plants. Digging them up is expensive and time consuming because some of those roots are down two meters or more. Everybody wants deep-rooted crops — but until now, we didn’t know how to get them.”

An added benefit to deeper-rooting crops, Lynch noted, is that they store carbon in the soil more effectively. And soil is the right place to put carbon, he pointed out, because carbon in the atmosphere is a bad thing — it causes global warming. Carbon in the soil is a good thing — it boosts fertility.

“Having deeper roots means that carbon the plants get from photosynthesis is stored down deeper in the soil when they build roots. And the deeper carbon is put in the soil, the longer it stays in the soil,” he said. “The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that just having deep-rooted crops in America alone could offset years of our total carbon emissions. That’s huge — think about all the acres growing crops in America. If those roots grow just a little bit deeper, then we’re storing massive amounts of carbon deeper in the soil.”

Developing the new method — which the researchers called LEADER (Leaf Element Accumulation from DEep Root) — took six years and involved the collection and analysis of more than 2,000 soil core samples at four research sites across the country, noted Molly Hanlon, a former postdoctoral scholar in Lynch’s research group, who spearheaded the study.

It involved growing a set of 30 genetically distinct lines of corn at Penn State’s Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center, the University of Colorado’s Agricultural Research and Education Center, the University of Wisconsin Arlington Agricultural Research Station, and the University of Wisconsin Hancock Agricultural Research Station. The researchers found that they could correctly classify the plots with the longest deep root lengths — deeper than 30 or 40 centimeters — using the LEADER method with high accuracy.

A major tenet of soil science is that biological, physical and chemical properties vary with soil depth, explained Hanlon, now a senior research scientist with Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis.

“And plant roots grow through these different soil layers,” she said. “The elements are then transported to the shoot where we can quickly and easily assay the elemental content of leaf tissue using X-ray fluorescence. In this way, the leaves can serve as indicators or sensors of where the roots are in the soil.”

In the study, the researchers were able to accurately estimate root depth by analyzing the foliar accumulation of elements naturally occurring in diverse soils. As an alternative method for assessing root depth, in both field and greenhouse experiments, they injected strontium into the soil at a set depth as a tracer for LEADER analysis. Later, they harvested plants growing nearby and determined that strontium detected in the leaves strongly correlated to the depth of their roots.

Although the LEADER method was accomplished with corn, it offers a wider application, Lynch suggested.

“It shows promise as a tool for measuring root depth in different plant species and soils,” he said. “It made sense to do this research with corn — it’s one of the world’s most important crops, grown extensively as a staple food for humans, livestock feed, as a biofuel and as a starting material in industry. Deeper-rooted corn crops able take up more water and nitrogen under limiting conditions, with increased long-term soil carbon storage would be a major development. But this LEADER method can be used with all plants.”

Kathleen Brown, Penn State professor emeritus of plant stress biology, contributed to the research.

This research was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy ARPA-e and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

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JOURNAL

Crop Science

DOI

10.1002/csc2.21149 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

LEADER (Leaf Element Accumulation from DEep Roots): A nondestructive phenotyping platform to estimate rooting depth in the field

Research team identifies genetic contribution to the composition of the microbiome around maize roots

LEIBNIZ INSTITUTE OF PLANT GENETICS AND CROP PLANT RESEARCH

 

IMAGE: 

MAIZE PLANTS GROWING UNDER DROUGHT STRESS IN THE EXPERIMENT PERFORMED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BONN.

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CREDIT: DR. PENG YU, UNIVERSITY OF BONN

In order for plants to grow, they absorb water and nutrients through their roots. In doing so, they rely on tiny helpers: bacteria and fungi in particular are found in a thin layer around the roots. These microbes also ward off organisms that are harmful to the plant, just as the "microbiome" in the human gut helps determine whether we fall ill or stay healthy.

An international research team led by the University of Bonn and with the participation of the IPK Leibniz Institute has now demonstrated on maize plants that the genetic make-up of the host plant has a significant influence on the composition of the root microbes. "It was shown that the root microbiome is strongly dependent on stress conditions such as nutrient or water deficiency," says Dr. Yong Jiang, one of the first authors of the study and a scientist in IPK's research group “Quantitative Genetics”.

The genetic make-up of different maize varieties varies greatly. Regional varieties are adapted to very different environmental conditions, depending on whether they are grown in the cooler highlands or warmer lowlands of South America. "The centuries-long selection of maize varieties adapted to the local climate led to very different genotypes, which we were able to use for the study," says Dr. Peng Yu, head of the junior research group "Functional Root Biology" at the University of Bonn.

The research team has now analysed 129 maize varieties. These were grown under "normal" conditions and under a lack of phosphorus, nitrogen and water. In addition, the DNA of microbes from 3,168 samples taken from the layer around the roots, which is just a few millimetres thick, was sequenced.

The role of the genetic material in the root was revealed under stress conditions. Nutrient and water deficiency also had an influence on the composition of the microbes. However, under the same stress conditions, differences in the microbiome of the maize varieties were nevertheless revealed. "We have shown that certain maize genes interact with certain bacteria," explains Dr. Peng Yu.

The international research team was even able to use data on the growing conditions at the place of origin of a particular maize variety and its genetic make-up to predict which key organisms occur in the microbiome at the root. Bacteria of the genus Massilia stood out in particular: "It was striking that only a few specimens of these microbes were present when there was a sufficient supply of nitrogen," explains Prof. Dr. Gabriel Schaaf from the Ecophysiology of Plant Nutrition department at INRES and member of the PhenoRob Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn. If, on the other hand, nitrogen was scarce, many Massilia were found at the roots. The team then "inoculated" maize roots with this bacterium. This showed that the plants subsequently formed many more lateral roots and thus significantly improved their nutrient and water uptake.

In further investigations, the researchers discovered that the root attracts Massilia bacteria with flavones. This is a plant pigment that stimulates the formation of lateral roots with the help of the bacteria. "However, the prerequisite for this was that the maize plant had a microtubule-binding gene," says Dr. Peng Yu.

"For this study, we also opened up the toolbox of quantitative genetics for microbiome research," explains IPK scientist Dr. Yong Jiang. "We were surprised by the large proportion of the genetic component in the formation of the microbiome." The results can be used by both science and breeding. "They can serve as a basis for investigating further agroecological issues and for developing new maize varieties that are better adapted to climate change based on the genome and microbiome data."

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JOURNAL

Nature Plants

DOI

10.1038/s41477-024-01654-7 

ARTICLE TITLE

Heritable microbiome variation is correlated with source environment in locally adapted maize varieties

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

21-Mar-2024