Biomass production in the Lower Mississippi River Basin: Mitigating associated nutrient and sediment discharge to the Gulf of Mexico

Ha, Miae; Zhang, Zhonglong; Wu, May

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.184

Cited by 12 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Model parameterization and calibration methods have been detailed in Ha et al . The simulation period is 21 years from 1990 to 2010.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recognizing economic value in multifunctional buffers in the lower Mississippi river basin

Hui

2018

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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Integrating conservation practices with bioenergy has been recommended as a promising strategy to improve bioeconomy and water quality but the literature on the economics of this strategy is limited. This study evaluated the value proposition of reducing nutrient loss from cropland by implementing switchgrass riparian buffers in the Lower Mississippi River Basin (LMRB). Nutrient loss was simulated by using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool. The value proposition of nutrient abatement was quantified by estimating (1) value of trapped nutrients as fertilizer and (2) potential net returns of harvesting switchgrass as bioenergy feedstock at different farm‐gate prices. Results suggest that switchgrass buffers may reduce mean annual total nitrogen and total phosphorus loads from cropland in the LMRB by 23% and 31%, respectively. The value of trapped nutrients is considerable (mean = $69 ha−1 year−1) but far less than the cost of implementing a switchgrass buffer (mean = $163 ha−1 year−1). At biomass prices of $20, $40, $60, and $80 per dry‐ton, mean net returns of switchgrass buffers (without considering land‐use change from cropland to buffers) were estimated to be around −$66, $199, $463, and $727 ha−1 year−1, respectively. Total net returns for the LMRB may be reduced by 20% if switchgrass is grown without the addition of commercial fertilizer. The results highlight the potential of switchgrass buffers for improving water sustainability of both agricultural and bioenergy production. The value proposition of switchgrass buffers is nevertheless sensitive to future feedstock price. The impact of fertilizer prices change and forgone income on benefit analysis is also presented. © 2018 The Authors. Biofuels, Bioproducts, and Biorefining published by Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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“…Model parameterization and calibration methods have been detailed in Ha et al . The simulation period is 21 years from 1990 to 2010.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recognizing economic value in multifunctional buffers in the lower Mississippi river basin

Hui

2018

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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“…However, this intensive production has resulted in considerable nutrient‐related water quality problems, both for Corn Belt region stream systems and further downstream, primarily due to the use of inorganic fertilizer and livestock manure nutrients on cropland (Rabotyagov et al 2012; Kling et al 2017; Bouska et al 2018; Christianson et al 2018; Jones, Nielsen, et al 2018; Turner and Rabalais 2019). The Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB) and Ohio‐Tennessee River Basin (OTRB) comprise much of the Corn Belt region and are major sources of exported nitrogen and phosphorus to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico (USEPA 2008; Demissie et al 2012; Wu et al 2012; Demissie et al 2017; Kling et al 2017; Panagopoulos et al 2017; Ha et al 2018). Monitoring data reported for the UMRB (Sprague et al 2011) and major Iowa watersheds (Jones, Nielsen, et al 2018) confirm continued high nitrate export to the Mississippi River.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biomass Production with Conservation Practices for Two Iowa Watersheds

Tomer

et al. 2020

J American Water Resour Assoc

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Research Impact Statement: A hydrologic model evaluates biomass production with conservation practices in two watersheds in Iowa and demonstrates the water quality benefits of bioenergy production based on landscape design. ABSTRACT: Hydrologic modeling was used to estimate potential changes in nutrients, suspended sediment, and streamflow in various biomass production scenarios with conservation practices under different landscape designs. Two major corn and soybean croplands were selected for study: the South Fork of the Iowa River watershed and the headwater of the Raccoon River watershed. A physically based model, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool, was used to simulate hydrology and water quality under different scenarios with conservation practices and biomass production. Scenarios are based on conservation practices and biomass production; riparian buffer (RB), saturated buffer, and grassed waterways; various stover harvest rates of 30%, 45%, and 70% with and without winter cover crops; and conversion of marginal land to switchgrass. Conservation practices and landscape design with different biomass feedstocks were shown to significantly improve water quality while supporting sustainable biomass production. Model results for nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediments were analyzed temporally at spatial scales that varied from hydrologic response units to the entire watershed. With conservation practices, water quality could potentially improve by reducing nitrogen loads by up to 20%-30% (stover harvest with cover crop), phosphorus loads by 20%-40% (RB), and sediment loads by 30%-70% (stover harvest with cover crop and RB).

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“…[7][8][9][10][11] Switchgrass can also provide many other benefits, including increased soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, improved wildlife habitats, reduced fertilizer input requirements, and thus lower greenhouse gas emissions from the soil. [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] Historical data have shown that high nitrate loss from agricultural cropland is a major source of nitrogen in the Mississippi River Basin, 19,[22][23][24][25][26][27] which is concentrated in the agricultural dominant Upper Mississippi River Basin [28][29][30][31] especially in the major Iowa watersheds. 8,32,33 The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Hypoxia Task Force concluded that establishing riparian buffers could play a central role in nutrient reduction strategy for the Mississippi River, leading to a reduction of hypoxia zone in the Gulf of Mexico.…”

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Environmental and cost benefits of multi‐purpose buffers in an agricultural watershed for biomass production

2021

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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The cost‐benefit of riparian buffers to landowners has not been fully understood despite its ecosystem benefits. This study investigates the environmental and economic value of multi‐purpose buffers for biomass production under alternative land‐management scenarios at the watershed scale. The work incorporates the Soil and Water Assessment Tool with a field‐scale tool, the Agriculture Conservation Practice Framework, and cost‐benefit analysis. Our work took place in the agriculturally dominant Raccoon River watershed (RRW) in Iowa. The cost analysis includes implementing and harvesting the switchgrass buffers, the value of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer, and the forgone income of cropland to determine the net return under 12 alternative feedstock scenarios. We estimated that 14 603 Mg of nitrogen and 2563 Mg of phosphorus runoffs can be intercepted by riparian buffers in the RRW, representing a nutrient loss reduction of 11% of nitrogen and 26% of phosphorus. These nutrients are valued at $1.31 million (M) for phosphorus and $1.24 M for nitrogen as fertilizers. The trapped nutrients account for 12% of the riparian buffers’ total cost. We found that net economic returns increase with biomass market price, increase with maintenance fertilizer application, and decrease with the cropland areas that are converted to buffers. Under current land management, a biomass market price at $60 per dry ton of biomass would be economically viable at the sub‐basin level when maintenance fertilizers are applied. At $80 per dry ton, all 108 sub‐basins in the RRW would be profitable up to $517 a year. The results highlight the trade‐offs between water quality and profitability. Published 2021. This article is a U.S. Government work and is inthe public domain in the USA.

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Biomass production in the Lower Mississippi River Basin: Mitigating associated nutrient and sediment discharge to the Gulf of Mexico

Cited by 12 publications

References 31 publications

Recognizing economic value in multifunctional buffers in the lower Mississippi river basin

Recognizing economic value in multifunctional buffers in the lower Mississippi river basin

Biomass Production with Conservation Practices for Two Iowa Watersheds

Environmental and cost benefits of multi‐purpose buffers in an agricultural watershed for biomass production

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