Abstract

Estimating Biomass Availability Using Soil and Land Use Data
Track: Agriculture
Authors: Tim Johnson

With the increasing interest of renewable energy, any excess waste products from agriculture are being investigated as opportunities. Using biomass as an energy source for electrical generation is moving forward in its life-cycle but determining where the resources are located is difficult. Using ArcView Desktop, Spatial Analyst, and Modelbuilder , an estimated inventory of biomass was created for northeast Iowa. Predominate land use, slope and residue availability were calculated for the 6600 square mile study area. Limiting factors such as non agricultural land uses and highly sloped areas which can only lose a small amount of ground cover reduced the estimated inventory of biomass available. As public industries and private companies being to investigate the opportunities with biomass that may exist in the future, the biomass inventory will be able to help industry take the first steps in finding locations that increase their chances for success.