Switch Grass - the grass that gives back

Much hay has been made of President Bush’s statement that the U.S. is addicted to oil during the State of the Union address. Bush also managed to slip in a little mention of Switch Grass, a native grass of this continent that could be used for making fuel much like corn is used to produce ethanol.

We caught an NPR piece on the radio about Switch Grass in which one David Bransby, a Professor of Energy Crops at Auburn University, explains what makes the grass so special. Tree Hugger has lifted the finer points of the interview and posted them here.

Some interesting details about Switch Grass are that its very hearty and can grow in diverse climates, it has a very high yield per acre with little use of pesticides and its production costs are low. Because the whole plant is used in producing ethanol, Switch Grass can also net up to 100 gallons of fuel per ton, which is better than that of corn.