Strategic Communications and Marketing News Bureau

Environmental effects of biofuels crops must be weighed, researchers say

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Biofuels advocates should not ignore the potential ecological side effects of crops being developed to produce such fuels, a researcher at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign says in an article being published today in Science.

While there is a great need for stable, non-polluting energy alternatives that reduce U.S. reliance on foreign fuel sources, research on these new energy sources developed by agronomists must be balanced by collaborating with ecologists who can help address the environmental risks of biofuels production, says S. Raghu of the Illinois Natural History Survey in Champaign (a division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources). Raghu is the lead author of the Science article on the environmental issues involving biofuels. He holds adjunct appointments at Illinois in the department of entomology and the department of natural resources and environmental sciences.

Demand for alternative energy sources recently was given added impetus by the federal Renewable Energy Initiative, which calls for the identification of biofuels crops as energy sources. However, this initiative may be in direct conflict with a previous presidential directive, Executive Order 13112, which attempts to protect the U.S. from the importation of potentially invasive species unless benefits outweigh potential harms.

Ironically, the very attributes that make certain plants ideal biofuel candidates also make them potential invasive species when they are introduced into our environment, Raghu said. Ecologists warn that a number of crops being considered for biofuels, including the exotic grass Miscanthus x giganteus, could damage the environment as invasive species because of characteristics such as rapid growth, low pest incidence and efficient water utilization.

The authors point out that even native biofuel species (such as Panicum virgatum, also known as switchgrass) can become invasive when they encroach upon habitats in which they are not endemic.

The article is a collective call from scientists in universities and government for biofuels research to address ecological risks rigorously prior to large-scale distribution of biofuel species across our landscape.

Given the increasing political and social pressures to develop biofuels, the authors stress the need for policy makers to carefully analyze the environmental costs, and balance them against the environmental and economic benefits of introducing plant species as biofuel sources. Such analyses are already mandatory for other novel or exotic species introductions, such as biological control agents and transgenic plants.

Editor’s note: To reach S. Raghu, call 217-333-7028; e-mail: raghu@uiuc.edu

Read Next

Health and medicine Dr. Timothy Fan, left, sits in a consulting room with the pet owner. Between them stands the dog, who is looking off toward Fan.

How are veterinarians advancing cancer research in dogs, people?

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — People are beginning to realize that dogs share a lot more with humans than just their homes and habits. Some spontaneously occurring cancers in dogs are genetically very similar to those in people and respond to treatment in similar ways. This means inventive new treatments in dogs, when effective, may also be […]

Honors From left, individuals awarded the 2025 Campus Awards for Excellence in Public Engagement are Antoinette Burton, director of the Humanities Research Institute; Ariana Mizan, undergraduate student in strategy, innovation and entrepreneurship; Lee Ragsdale, the reentry resource program director for the Education Justice Project; and Ananya Yammanuru, a graduate student in computer science. Photos provided.

Awards recognize excellence in public engagement

The 2025 Campus Awards for Excellence in Public Engagement were recently awarded to faculty, staff and community members who address critical societal issues.

Uncategorized Portrait of the researchers standing outside in front of a grove of trees.

Study links influenza A viral infection to microbiome, brain gene expression changes

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — In a study of newborn piglets, infection with influenza A was associated with disruptions in the piglets’ nasal and gut microbiomes and with potentially detrimental changes in gene activity in the hippocampus, a brain structure that plays a central role in learning and memory. Maternal vaccination against the virus during pregnancy appeared […]

Strategic Communications and Marketing News Bureau

507 E. Green St
MC-426
Champaign, IL 61820

Email: stratcom@illinois.edu

Phone (217) 333-5010