PROJECTS
The Great Lakes Biomass State and Regional Partnership (GLBSRP) address the objectives of the National Partnership through a three-pronged approach. First, there is a State grant component that provides funding to each of the seven participating states and is designed to increase the capabilities of the State energy offices in the field of biomass energy. Grants to the States facilitate interaction between the State energy offices and other State agencies to address State-specific biomass energy issues.
The second component of the regional partnership provides subcontracts for projects that have a region-wide benefit. These focus on a wide range of issues and may include biomass energy information, technical assistance, technology demonstrations, environmental assessments and economic analyses. Private developers, not-for-profit corporations, universities and other non-federal organizations are eligible for project funding.
Lastly, the regional partnership sponsors some activities that are performed in house by Council staff or by support service contractors. The staff also provides extensive technology transfer activities including presentations and displays at meetings and workshops, distribution of publications, sponsorship of regional conferences and working with potential biomass energy users.
Following are representative samples of activities in each of these three areas.
State Activities
The GLBSRP’s annual grant to the States has been used in a variety of ways. In some States, it has been used primarily to retain staff that is knowledgeable about bioenergy and bioproducts to provide technical assistance to citizens throughout their State. In other States, the funds have been used to undertake a specific project or to produce a specific product.
Illinois
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), host for the Illinois Biomass Program, partnered with the National Energy Education Development Project (NEED) to prepare and distribute K-12 classroom materials designed to educate students, educators, parents and the public about ethanol production, use and environmental impacts. These groups then developed a workshop series for educators about renewable fuels. These workshops, along with the new curriculum produced for them, will help educators learn more about using renewable resources to run our cars and buses. Participants learn about ethanol, biodiesel, and other fuels, while participating in many hands-on activities. Through a grant from the GLBSRP, these workshops will be replicated in all member States.
Indiana
The Indiana Biomass Program is now part of The Energy Group in the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. While the program is now undergoing a number of changes, it will continue to provide assistance to develop and implement biomass energy systems in Indiana. In the past, the program provided grants that focused on project partnerships among local and regional organizations, researchers, industry, utilities and government. These partnerships helped to increase the role of biomass in Indiana's energy mix, implement cost-effective biomass energy technologies and promote private and public sector investments. The program has also been instrumental in developing an E-85 (85% ethanol) refueling infrastructure throughout the State.
Iowa
The Iowa Biomass Energy Program, housed in the Department of Natural Resources, has been involved in a number of projects to promote and market the use of methane derived from on-farm anaerobic digestion of manure. Among these projects is the coordination of the Audubon County Economic Development Corporation, other State agencies and stakeholders to develop a community digester. Audubon County has the second largest concentration of swine in Iowa, and their intent is to use the digester both as an energy resource and a means for addressing environmental concerns. Attendees at a recent series of meetings included representatives from Iowa DNR; Iowa economic development, livestock and agriculture producer groups; food and meat processing industries; Iowa State University Extension; and, local utilities.
Michigan
The Michigan Biomass Program, in the Department of Labor and Economic Growth, along with the Michigan Parks and Recreation Division helped support the dedication and grand opening of the Cedar River State Harbor and Marina. Funds were used to develop a tabletop display; write press releases; develop, print and distribute brochures on marine biodiesel use; develop a slide show for use in the boaters’ lounge; conduct a survey of boaters that used biodiesel fuel; and, other activities related to grand opening festivities. Boaters were also offered coupons as an incentive to try biodiesel. This is the first marina in the State to have a B5 blend of biodiesel available.
Minnesota
The Minnesota Biomass Energy Program, part of the Department of Commerce, contracted with The Center for Rural Policy and Development to conduct a study examining the economic development potential of biomass energy technology in rural Minnesota. Together they hosted a meeting of officials from throughout the region to better understand how neighboring States view this potential and to exchange ideas on developing policies that encourage rural economic development through bioenergy production.
Ohio
The Ohio Biomass Energy Program, within the Public Utilities Commission, provides leadership in Ohio to facilitate State policy and incentives for bioenergy use; increased bioenergy awareness; increased bioenergy development; and, the use of federal funding opportunities. Program staff participates as a principal in Ohio Biomass Task Force planning meetings and serves on the Central Ohio Clean Fuels Coalition/Clean City program project development committees. In order to promote greater public understanding of bioenergy and to increase its use in the State, the Ohio Biomass Energy Program produces a newsletter that highlights State, regional and national activities, available resources and funding opportunities. It is available in hard copy or on line.
Wisconsin
The Wisconsin Biomass Program conducts a wide range of activities including providing technical assistance; managing Renewable Energy Assistance Program (REAP) grants that are funded by the Oil Overcharge Program; providing public information through the Wisconsin Energy News, the Wisconsin Renewable Energy Yellow Pages, and other information outlets; building a database of Wisconsin’s biomass supply and use including GIS data input and analysis; and, working with other State agencies and power producers to increase the use of biomass energy in the State. In order to prepare the market for customer-based biomass through the Wisconsin Focus on Energy project, program staff helps administer a number of programs that affect biomass energy use including financing, technical assistance, business and marketing assistance and demonstration.
Regional Activities
The GLBSRP has been a major cosponsor of the Annual Conference on Renewable Energy from Organics Recycling for the past four years. The conference is presented by BioCycle magazine, and each of the five conferences has been held in a GLBSRP State. The conferences generally attract about 200-300 energy professionals and other participants. For several years, this has been the only national conference held in the United States that addresses all forms of biomass energy including liquid fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel, biogas production on farms and at municipal facilities, as well as power production from combustion. The GLBSRP Director and other GLBSRP representatives have been part of the planning committees for these conferences. This has become a good forum to highlight GLBSRP-supported projects during the plenary and breakout sessions of the conference.
The GLBSRP has produced a number of informative and educational publications. One of the most successful has been the “Agricultural Biogas Casebook,” which was prepared for the Partnership by Resource Strategies, Inc. of Madison, Wisconsin. This casebook presents profiles of farms using anaerobic digesters (AD) for animal manures in the Great Lakes States. Its purpose is to provide a picture of the current state of on-farm anaerobic digester use in the region. The summary information provided in these profiles can help those considering using AD technologies to make informed choices and to provide a general improvement in implementation efficiency and operator success. By sharing their experiences, these “pioneers” may help service providers better understand the needs of their customers and aid potential operators to make a smooth transition to using biogas systems. The first casebook was so well received by energy, farm bureau, resource conservation and development offices throughout the region that a second, expanded and updated, version of the casebook was also published.
In-House Activities
As part of its outreach efforts, GLBSRP provides support, assists with planning and participates in a number of renewable energy events held throughout the region. This year, the Partnership hosted informational displays, distributed printed materials and conducted workshops at four renewable energy fairs: the Midwest Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Fair, the largest such event in the nation, held in June in Custer, Wisconsin; the Illinois Renewable Energy Fair in August in Oregon, Illinois; the I-RENEW Energy Expo in September in Hiawatha, Iowa; and, the Real World Application of Renewable Energy Trade Show in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa this November. State biomass energy offices also provided speakers, displays and E-85 and biodiesel-fueled vehicles for these events. Each of these is an annual event and the GLBSRP has participated since the inception of each. These “grass-roots” fairs are some of the best venues for getting the bioenergy story out to the general public.
The GLBSRP continues to host monthly stakeholder conference calls to discuss bioenergy issues and outreach activities. Participants include State energy offices, State agriculture offices, public utility commissions, USDA Rural Development offices, and related non-governmental offices from throughout the region. Some of the calls were recently expanded to include web casts, allowing participants to view PowerPoint presentations on their computers via the internet. The calls have included presentations on the Farm Bill Section 9006 funding opportunities, the USDA Value-Added Producer Grant program and the Conservation Security Program of the Natural Resources Conservation Service. All three programs are potential funding sources for rural bioenergy and bioproducts activities in the region.
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