Energy Cane

One of the major benefits of expansion is the reduction of fixed cost (fixed and selling). The cost is absorbed by 85,000 units instead of 80,000 units resulting in saving of $0.42 per unit.

* Calculated correctly—No. The correct calculation would equal what the material can be sold for at the current market value: 25,000 lbs x $9/per lb = $225,000

Currently the market that the biosystems has been catering with reference to its harvester is the foreign markets of Brazil, Latin America, British Columbia and Scandinavia. As these countries show great potential of growth in the in the biomass-based

Hawaii has at least 50 renewable energy projects spread over five islands, including the state’s only geothermal power plant on the eastern rift zone off the Kilauea volcano.

Once the feasibility study is done selection of site for establishing the plant takes the driver¡¦s seat. The plant must be located where the raw-material access and energy supply is not a problem. A closed loop must be made in collaboration with the local farmers and mills (sugarcane, wood, rice processing plants) for the uninterrupted supply of biomass. The capacity of the plant must be decided keeping in mind the investments in to account. Also storage capacity must be decided for the biomass as a major portion of it is cyclical in nature. Next in line is the study of the market for electricity in the region and planning for the distribution of the same. The marketing strategy needs to be finalized to take care of the supply side.

The principal material inputs into the agricultural industry include water, fertilizer, and fuel. A significant

Corn was first used to feed cattle after the second World War, when there were large surpluses and prices were low, but the price has risen since from $1.30 in 19468 to around $5.00/bu9 today. According to Dr Richard Watson, chief scientist at Hart farms, confinement farms that use corn and grain as feed have costs in the range of $17-18/cwt and rely heavily on subsidies, such as the margin protection subsidy10. Comparably, Dr Watson says, grass-fed dairy farms run costs of $12/cwt. The operational costs of confinement farm dairies, that are higher than that of pasteur dairies, and Hart is a prime example of this, having developed a unique adaptation of the New Zealand grazing model, which enables Hart to be a cost leader by up to 50%11.

In the analysis, I will include the break even yields and break even prices for the two bioenergy crops. I should be able to send the preliminary results by end of next week. To

However, the problem of low efficiency has no easy answers. Hydroponic production uses 90-90% less water than conventional farming techniques. These hydroponic grow houses can also operate year round, reducing the need to import out of season produce. (Kaiser, Ernst, 3) Unfortunately the startup cost of these systems is much higher than starting a conventional farm and the breakeven point is later after installation. This means that the majority of farmers are unable to implement such systems. If the government switched their focus from subsidizing crops such as corn to subsidizing hydroponic systems, this technology may become more accessible to

The article discusses the strengths and weaknesses of building a 60-megawatt wind farm in the Kahikinui district in Hawaii. The article is written as a testimony from different people and how they feel about a company—NextEra—building a wind farm on their land. According to Pedroni, the executive director at NextEra, this project would allow Hawaii to be on a 100% renewable energy source by 2045. The project consists of 20 wind turbines which requires access to 30 acres of land. Such a land requirement necessitates a lease agreement between NextEra and the Hawaiian government, which would allocate upwards of $200,000 every year. Additionally,

performance of both irrigated and rain-fed agricultural production systems. Production of more food to feed the

The constraints on cover crops affecting cover crops are: the accountability of labor overheads and the cost of cover crops purchases, the time available to plant is

Agricultural practices throughout the ages have evolved dramatically. Having started off as simple pastoral management and shifting cultivation, these methods have been altered substantially in the name of “progress”, primarily in the US and other industrialized nations. Through this progression the energy inputs and outputs has been drastically altered. The industrialized food system as we know it is much more complex today than the simple agricultural practices used thousands of years ago. Today, the industrialized agricultural system is dependent on extraordinary amounts of fossil fuel inputs in order to maintain its complexity. Energy is needed for growing, processing, packaging, distributing, preparing and disposing of food. With the

Table 4 displays the energy values for inputs and output in different alfalfa harvesting systems. The total energy requirements for producing the alfalfa hay and

Sugarcane is grown in about 102 countries in the world and India occupies the first rank from the point of area-followed by Brazil and Cuba. Andhra Pradesh occupies the fifth place with regard to cane area and cane production in