Ecobreves – MEXICO: Grass for Ethanol

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

MEXICO, Jul 6 2009 (IPS) - From greenhouse-grown grasses in the southern Mexican town of Atlixco, some 150 km from the capital, a new type of biofuel could ultimately emerge. The giant Miscanthus grass, a hybrid and infertile species native to Asia, is a source of biomass for producing cellulosic ethanol.

It is a “perennial plant of rapid growth and great speed in photosynthesis,” said chemical engineer Fernando Sánchez, of the National Autonomous University of Mexico and promoter of the project.

This variety can yield 25 tons per hectare, absorb carbon from the atmosphere and restore soils. Its rapid growth, low mineral content and high biomass make it a unique supplier for ethanol, Sánchez told Tierramérica.

But the use of Miscanthus has some people worried because the crop has high water requirements and because it may be grown on land otherwise used for food crops.