Abstract
Bioenergy is the number one source of renewable energy in the United States. Current sources of biomass feedstock include forestry resources and agricultural residues. Both are unsustainable, forestry resources are limited and agricultural residues provide poor conversion yields and can impact the world’s food market. Dedicated energy crops promise to increase feedstock to fuel conversion rates while providing a wide range of potential services including carbon sequestration, erosion prevention, biodiversity protection and emission reduction. This report uses GIS to locate a lignocellulosic biofuel conversion facility. Factors influencing location of a facility include proximity to feedstock, proximity to transportation network and procurement costs. The model showed that the best location for a biofuel conversion facility in Florida was Jackson County and the most suitable crop would be switchgrass. Land in central and southern Florida was found not suitable for conversion to dedicated energy crops due to the higher value of sugarcane and orange crops. The use of Conservation Reserve Program land could potentially increase the supply of biomass feedstock to the conversion facility. A dedicated energy crop system also has potential to reduce GHG emissions and protect water resources. The study is limited in its scope, and does not consider competition for feedstock, traditional crop price fluctuation or individual farmer decision making.